Megan Cusack as Nancy Corrigan, Helen George as Trixie Franklin in Call the Midwife. Photo: BBC

Megan Cusack, the youngest member of the Cusack acting family dynasty has joined the cast of Call the Midwife for series 10. No relation to the American Cusack family dynasty of father Richard and siblings John, Joan or Ann, Megan is the niece of Irish actress sisters Niamh, Sorcha, Sinead and Catherine Cusack. She will play Irish student midwife Nancy Corrigan in episode 4 of series 10 which premieres on BBC1 Sunday night. Series 10 will tentatively air on PBS this Fall in the States.

Just in case you might be wondering what it takes to be considered an ‘acting family dynasty’, consider this. Megan’s grandparents Maureen and Cyril were famous actors in the 1940s and her father is theatre producer Padraig Cusack. Fans of Father Brown will immediately recognize the name of Sorcha Cusack as parish secretary Mrs. McCarthy.

Sorcha Cusack as Mrs McCarthy in Father Brown. Photo: BBC Media Centre

It doesn’t stop there as Catherine, an accomplished stage actress, appeared in Coronation Street in the early 90s. Like Catherine, sister Niamh has been a fixture on the London stage in addition to a long-running role in Heartbeat while Sinead, who appeared in the 2016 Call the Midwife Christmas special, and has also been a fixture on the London stage is married to Oscar-winner Jeremy Irons. Their son, The Wife star Max Irons, is Megan’s cousin and another cousin is Calam Lynch, Niamh’s son, who appeared in Bridgerton. Need I go on?

“One of the most useful things for auditioning was my aunt Niamh saying you just need to have fun,” said Megan. According to Cusack, a key part of landing the role wasn’t her last name but her ability to ride a bicycle – they are bike-riding midwives at Nonnatus House, remember. Not having ridden a bike for a decade, Cusack explained: “My agent rang and she was like, ‘Can you ride a bike? Can you ride a bike?’ That’s all she said. I was like, ‘Uh yeah, I haven’t ridden one in years but, yes, I can.’ And she was like, ‘great’ and hung up. Later I got the call saying I’d got it. It’s a good thing I said yes.”

Megan’s debut on Call the Midwife will be in Sunday night’s episode while PBS viewers will have to wait until this Fall to watch the newest Cusack in action.