When Hope Calls is an American drama television series. The series is a spin-off of Hallmark Channel's When Calls the Heart, which is based on the Canadian West book series by Janette Oke. It premiered on August 30, 2019 as the inaugural original programming on Hallmark Movies Now, the Hallmark Channel's digital streaming service, with new episodes being released through October 25, 2019. The series was subsequently aired on Hallmark Channel in early 2020. The series was renewed for a second season and premiered on Great American Family on December 18, 2021[1] and will resume in January 2025.[2]
Premise
The series follows Lillian and Grace, originally introduced in When Calls the Heart: The Greatest Christmas Blessing, as two orphaned sisters, who were separated when Lillian was seven and Grace was five. The two reunite as adults and open an orphanage in a small northwest town.[3] The period piece is set in 1916 in the western Canadian town of Brookfield.[4] Mountie Gabriel has a romantic interest in Lillian. Chuck, a rancher turned veterinarian, is the object of Grace's flirtations, much to the dismay of his dubious mother, Tess Stewart.[4]
Cast and characters
Main
Morgan Kohan as Lillian Walsh, Grace's older sister who was adopted at a young age and separated from Grace
Jocelyn Hudon as Grace Bennett (season 1), Lillian's younger sister who grew up in an orphanage; Grace departs for London at the end of the first season, and is revealed to have stayed and married there in "A Country Christmas".
Ryan-James Hatanaka[a] as Constable Gabriel "Gabe" Kinslow, the local Mountie in town
Greg Hovanessian as Charlie "Chuck" Stewart (season 1), Tess' son, and a rancher and the town veterinarian; it is revealed he left town after Grace did in "A Country Christmas".
Wendy Crewson as Tess Stewart, Chuck's mother, who owns the big local ranch
Hanneke Talbot as Maggie Parsons (recurring season 1; main season 2), the town nurse who is newly arrived to Brookfield
Marshall Williams as Sam Tremblay (recurring season 1; main season 2), a drifter into town who works as a handyman for Lillian at the orphanage
Neil Crone as Ronnie Stewart (recurring season 1; main season 2), Chuck's uncle and Tess's brother-in-law who runs the local hotel
Lori Loughlin as Abigail Stanton (season 2), an acquaintance of Lillian's, she is a kind woman from Hope Valley and Cody's mom
Recurring
Isaak Bailey as Christian (season 1), an orphan at the orphanage
Michael Copeman as Ken Newsome, a unfriendly old man
Liam MacDonald as Vincent, an older orphan at the orphanage
Kate Moyer as Sophia (season 1), an orphan at the orphanage.
Riley O'Donnell as Helen (season 1), an older orphan at the orphanage who is searching for her grandfather, and who goes to live with him in "Where Hope Goes".
Kim Roberts as Pearl Mayfair (season 1), a resident of Brookfield who owns a bakery
Elizabeth Saunders as Eleanor Winters (season 1), the orphanage's housemother
Simon Webster as Fred (season 1), a curious young orphan at the orphanage
Kevin McGarry as Nathan Grant (season 1) the Mountie from Hope Valley who comes to Brookfield to help Gabe.
Ava Weiss as Mary Louise, an orphan at the orphanage
Jefferson Brown as Joe Moody, the owner of Brookfield's general store
Kelly Martin as Ruth, a worker at the post office
Jonathan Potts as Ben Mendelson
Morgan David Jones as Hank, a ranch hand on the Stewart ranch
Kalinka Petrie as Lucie Clay, Chuck's childhood friend who may be romantically interested in him; she is later named the "foreman" at the Stewart ranch by Tess.
Guest stars
Pascale Hutton as Rosemary "Rosie" LeVeaux Coulter, an acquaintance of Grace's from Hope Valley (in "From the Ashes")
Kavan Smith as Leland "Lee" Coulter, another acquaintance of Grace's from Hope Valley (in "From the Ashes")
Rob Stewart as Tom Clay, a rancher from outside of town (in "Lost and Found" and "House in Order")
Emily Anderson as Eve Gardiner, Grace's old friend from the orphanage who is passing through town on her way to New York City (in "About a Girl")
Carter Ryan Evancic as Cody Stanton, Abigail Stanton's son (in "A Country Christmas, Parts 1 & 2")
Kyana Teresa as Debbie Mayfair, Pearl Mayfair's daughter who is running the bakery while Pearl is out of town. (in "A Country Christmas, Parts 1 & 2")
Daniel Lissing as Jack Thornton, a deceased constable who was a good friend of Abigail's. She dreams about him. (in "A Country Christmas, Part 2")
Trevor Donovan as Jim Reynolds (season 2), a Mountie based in Clearwater[5]
Having newly set up their orphanage in Brookfield, sisters Lillian and Grace face unwelcoming neighbors, especially Tess Stewart who has unresolved issues with Lillian's family. Constable Gabriel Kinslow reacquaints himself with the sisters after returning to town and is immediately charmed by Lillian. Meanwhile, Chuck, the town's veterinarian and Tess's son, helps Grace, when the cow she purchased from his mother fails to produce milk, and is impressed by Grace's tenacity. Despite their disagreements, the town bands together when a crisis strikes during the grand opening of a new hotel and puts lives, including Lillian's, at risk. This disaster helps Lillian and Grace gain some acceptance but creates a mystery for Gabriel to solve.
2
2
"From the Ashes"
Mike Rohl
Larry Bambrick
August 30, 2019 (2019-08-30)
Brookfield rebuilds after a devastating fire, and visitors from Hope Valley lend a hand. Lillian and Grace welcome Rosemary and Lee Coulter, who bring lumber and support. Gabriel investigates the cause of the fire, and, when evidence points to two orphans, Lillian begins to doubt her qualifications to run an orphanage. Tess's tumultuous history with Lillian's family complicates the mutual attraction between Grace and Chuck. Having lost his store in the fire, Joe considers moving. Meanwhile, nurse Maggie Parsons arrives in town, and Tess continues to feud with one of her neighbors over missing livestock.
3
3
"Out of the Past"
Bradley Walsh
Derek Thompson
September 6, 2019 (2019-09-06)
New evidence points Gabriel toward a suspect in the town fire, leading him to hunt for a fugitive. Grace takes a second job to make money for the orphanage, hoping to use the funds to help make the lives of the children in her care better than hers was growing up. Lillian tries to mend fences with Tess. Maggie settles into her job at the infirmary.
4
4
"Lost and Found"
Bradley Walsh
Sara Snow
September 13, 2019 (2019-09-13)
Lillian searches for an orphan's family member and hopes for the same success she had when she found Grace. She journeys to Mountie headquarters with Gabriel, and, while she searches through records, he meets with the bank robber who tried to kill him. Despite having no impact on his jail sentence, the bank robber claims that he is accused of stealing more money than he actually stole. Back in Brookfield, Grace and Chuck grow closer, but Tess orchestrates a scenario to extinguish their romantic spark. Maggie tries to help Joe with an old shoulder injury and soon realizes that guilt about the accident that caused it may be preventing him from trying to heal.
When a government worker comes to inspect the orphanage, Lillian and Grace attempt to measure up. Although they use creativity and community to address issues at the orphanage, the true test arises when the inspector questions events from Grace's past. Gabriel and Chuck help repair the orphanage's roof and work alongside Sam, a struggling prospector offering handyman services in exchange for room and board. Gabriel seems to be jealous over Sam's closeness to Lillian, while Chuck hopes to restore his blossoming relationship with Grace. Meanwhile, Tess puts her endeavor to buy a truck on hold when Ronnie needs her help.
6
6
"The Search"
Don McBrearty
Sara Snow & Larry Bambrick
September 27, 2019 (2019-09-27)
When a train robber is spotted near Brookfield, Lillian and Grace attempt to keep their orphans safe. Despite her initial instinct to trust Sam, Lillian second-guesses herself when the description of the train robber – and the caution of Gabriel Kinslow – casts doubts on his character. Gabriel helps Constable Nathan Grant, in town from Hope Valley, in hunting down the fugitive. Chuck stays at the orphanage as a protective measure and to spend more time with Grace. Tess interviews candidates for a new foreman but hopes that Chuck will eventually decide to run the family ranch. Meanwhile, Maggie makes an interesting discovery at the infirmary.
Hoping to replace Grace's painful birthday memories with happy new ones, Lillian rallies the orphans and friends from town to plan a party, but Grace does extra work at the restaurant on the night of the party. Meanwhile, Chuck takes Fred, one of the orphans, under his wing at the ranch, and Tess softens her steely demeanor when she sees the joy Fred experiences around the animals. Setting off on another possibly dangerous mission, Gabriel pursues a witness to the bank robbery who claims that powerful people used the robbery to cover up fraud. Sam and Lillian spend time together preparing a special birthday gift for Grace, during Gabriel's absence, and arouses his jealousy when he returns.
8
8
"About a Girl"
T. W. Peacocke
Alfonso Moreno
October 11, 2019 (2019-10-11)
Though Lillian locates Helen's grandfather, Helen struggles to remember the facts about her past that she needs to know in order to prove her identity. Determined to see the reunion through, Lillian turns to Sam and her friends in town for support. A friend from Grace's past encourages her to follow her dream of moving to New York, while Chuck urges her to stay. Gabriel's investigation into the suspected bank fraud raises questions about how Ronnie funded his hotel, and Tess tries to protect Ronnie when his less-than-legal hotel funding gets him in trouble with debtors. Meanwhile, Maggie helps a visitor of Brookfield searching for healthy living.
A reporter comes to Brookfield to do a story on Tess' late husband; Gabriel's investigation hits close to home; Chuck and Grace face an impasse in their relationship.
10
10
"Where Hope Goes"
Megan Follows
Alfonso Moreno & Sara Snow
October 25, 2019 (2019-10-25)
Lillian and Grace make a difficult choice in order to do what's best for one of their orphans; Gabriel hopes to get his man before Lillian, or anyone else, gets hurt; Chuck realizes that it is time to share his true feelings. Gabriel and Nathan keep their eye on their suspects. Gabriel feels they may go after Lillian, so he reluctantly asks for Sam's help to protect her. Grace prepares to accompany Helen to England to be reunited with her grandfather; she worries about leaving town and Chuck while they are in the midst of an argument. Unaware of her travel plans, Chuck accompanies Lucie on a cattle drive for his mother.
The town celebrates Christmas as a reporter for Harper's Bazaar comes to town. Abigail and Cody Stanton pay a visit to Lillian and spend Christmas at the Orphanage.
Note: This is episode, along with Part 2 is also called When Hope Calls Christmas.
12
2
"A Country Christmas, Part 2"
Bradley Walsh
Alfonso H. Moreno
December 18, 2021 (2021-12-18)
The town continues to celebrate Christmas while Abigail has a dream about an old friend who passed away.
Note: This is episode, along with Part 1 is also called When Hope Calls Christmas.
Production
When Hope Calls is a spin-off of the long running prime time series When Calls the Heart.[8] Primary filming is at Powassan, Ontario, Canada.[4] It is executive produced by Alfonso Moreno,[4] Brian Bird, Brad Krevoy, Susie Belzberg Krevoy, Michael Landon Jr., Amanda Phillips Atkins, Jimmy Townsend, and Eric Jarboe. Confirmation of the project, the Hallmark Network's inaugural streaming series, was announced February 9, 2019 as part of Crown Media Family Networks' bi-annual Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour.[8][3]
On September 29, 2021, it was reported that the series had renewed for a second season, but would now be broadcast on Great American Family. It was also reported that When Calls the Heart actress Lori Loughlin would appear in the second season premiere, in her first television acting appearance since her arrest for her role in the Varsity Blues scandal.[1]
Release
When Hope Calls premiered in back-to-back double episodes on August 30, 2019 on the Hallmark Movies Now network digital streaming service.[4] The first season was re-broadcast on Hallmark Channel starting in February 2020.[9][10] A second season premiered on December 18, 2021, and is broadcast on GAC Family instead of being released by Hallmark.[1]
