All right, ladies. Please pour yourself a cup of tea, select a cucumber sandwich, take out an exquisite sheet of your most formal stationery and your favorite fountain pen. It’s time we all wrote a heartfelt “thank you” note to Julian Fellowes.
Whether you’re looking forward to the characters we’ve come to love (and in some cases hate), the human drama unfolding upstairs and down, a happy ending for the Bateses (we can only hope), Dame Maggie’s clever quips, or everything that 'Downton Abbey' has served up over the past five years, be sure to watch the final season premiere on Sunday January 3rd on your local PBS station.
The first hint of delicious impropriety comes from Lady Violet, of all people. The younger Crawleys are feeling frisky, too. And the servants aren’t immune to it [sex] either.
Lesley Nicol's off-screen demeanor is far from that of the character she has become known for; still, much of the inspiration behind Mrs. Patmore came from Nicol’s own personality. “Mrs. Patmore and I have a similar sense of humor," Nicol says. "I'm not as sarcastic as she is, but we’re both funny.”
This year, Lady Edith will be the Crawley daughter to watch. I’ve a sense that Edith feels the old system let her down. Why should she adhere to it anymore? I think the girl is tired of playing the victim.
My 'Downton Abbey'-watching group: a good excuse to invite friends over and entertain them with cozy-toes winter food on a chilly weekend evening.
Honing our anticipation of the return of "Downton Abbey" through books, blogs, previews, parodies— even a witty assortment of "Downton" paper dolls. (Thomas and O'Brien come with "evil accessories.")
Far from the warm picture depicted in Downton Abbey, relations between servants and masters were cool and distant. The former were not fully recognized as fellow sentient beings—their feelings were not considered and their employers generally carried on social (and even physical) functions as if the servants were not there.
For those of us still mourning the loss of our beloved "Downton Abbey," here’s good news. This spring, PBS is serving up three back-to-back series — "Call the Midwife," "Grantchester" and "Mr. Selfridge" that will transport you across the pond for the next several Sunday nights.