The ladies of Downton Abbey
Over seven million viewers in the UK tuned in on Christmas Day to watch Matthew Crawley, played by Dan Stevens, meet his untimely end in a shock car crash. This autumn, the hugely successful Downton Abbey returns to our screens, brimming with a host of new characters and dramatic plot lines.
Several of the new characters are handsome men – no doubt intended to fi ll the heart-throb hole – but it appears that this series, the drama’s fourth, is set to be all about the ladies. In fact, another Lady is set to play a part too. An advert was placed in this very magazine to help fi nd employment for housemaid Ethel in the last series, and we can reveal The Lady also plays a starring role in the opening minutes of the fourth series – you will have to wait until the show airs, of course, to fi nd out why.
The new series opens six months after Matthew’s death, in February 1922. It is the start of a glitzy new decade, but Downton is suspended in gloom. Lady Mary continues to be overwhelmed by despair, her grief permeating right down to her wardrobe, a sad assortment of blacks and purples (as dictated by the Victorian mourning etiquette). However, with her husband deceased and a child who is the son and heir of Downton, her role, more than ever, is pivotal to the survival of the estate.
‘Mary has to rebuild her life in a society that is changing,’ says Lord Julian Fellowes, the writer and creator of the show. Michelle Dockery returns to play the part of the steely yet sensitive Lady Mary. The actress, who in real life speaks with a broad Essex accent (rather than plummy aristocratic tones), admits that she has missed her friend Dan while fi lming but has enjoyed the challenging new turns of Fellowes’s screenplay.
Life appears to be more exciting for Lady Mary’s younger sister, Lady Edith. Perhaps more so than any of the characters, her existence has been transformed by the war and the emerging autonomy of women. A timid, often overlooked middle sister in the fi rst series, she has grown to become quite the woman about town with her own newspaper column.
Left: Lady Edith. Right: newcomer Lady Rose. Inset: Dame Kiri Te Kanawa
Actress Laura Carmichael, who plays the part, has been spotted filming in glamorous locations around London. Charles Edwards returns as editor Michael Gregson, who, at the end of the last series, was seen expressing aff ection for the Earl’s daughter. After once being jilted at the altar, will she fi nally achieve lasting love?
Lady Rose is a fresh face at Downton. The Dowager Countess’s greatniece has moved to Downton from her family home in Scotland. Young and beautiful, she is ready to take on the rebel quota previously fi lled by the passionate Lady Sybil.
As already hinted at by her partyloving ways in previous episodes, she is eager to embrace life as a bright young thing of the 1920s. This is the fi rst major role for actress Lily James, who trained at the same acting school as fellow cast member Michelle Dockery. She is bound to secrecy on the specifics but has revealed that she was thrilled to be thrown in the deep end with storylines comprising much scandal and typical Downton drama. A
fter the odd criticism for the overly tragic happenings in the last series, Julian Fellowes’s fourth-season screenplay runs, by his own admission, ‘at a slightly more subtle pace’.
Early reviews of the new series have been glowing, with the attractive Downton ladies and men – from both upstairs and down – poised to captivate the world once more.
...AND HERE ARE DOWNTON'S CHAPS
CHARLES BLAKE (JULIAN OVENDEN) The handsome Charles Blake comes to Downton as part of a study to see how large estates may face diffiCulties in the changing society of the 1920s. Lady Mary thinks his presence at her home is the key to saving Downton, but does Blake have the same idea? If this well-established West End star is to become a potential love interest for Mary, he is sure to be in for a bumpy ride.
JACK ROSS (GARY CARR) Carr’s appearance as a charming jazz singer from Chicago is perhaps the biggest indication yet that Downton is entering the modern era. The fi rst-ever black cast member will impress the ladies with his singing when Lady Rose and Lady Mary see him perform in a club on a visit to London. A nod to the roaring attitudes of the era, his addition heralds change in the world of Downton.
LORD GILLINGHAM (TOM CULLEN) A childhood friend of Lady Mary, Lord Gillingham has seen Downton through highs and lows. He is attempting to live the life his well-to-do family expects of him, while trying to keep up with the demands of the modern world. No doubt the dashing new addition to the series will cheer up Lady Mary after the death of her husband.
MR GREEN (NIGEL HARMAN) Most recently appearing as Lord Farquaad in Shrek The Musical, and best known for his heart-throb role in EastEnders, Harman will be the newest addition downstairs. Playing a visiting valet, he will be charming the ladies of Downton (if rumours are to be believed). Sadly for us, a picture of him in costume is yet to be released.
Several of the new characters are handsome men – no doubt intended to fi ll the heart-throb hole – but it appears that this series, the drama’s fourth, is set to be all about the ladies. In fact, another Lady is set to play a part too. An advert was placed in this very magazine to help fi nd employment for housemaid Ethel in the last series, and we can reveal The Lady also plays a starring role in the opening minutes of the fourth series – you will have to wait until the show airs, of course, to fi nd out why.
The new series opens six months after Matthew’s death, in February 1922. It is the start of a glitzy new decade, but Downton is suspended in gloom. Lady Mary continues to be overwhelmed by despair, her grief permeating right down to her wardrobe, a sad assortment of blacks and purples (as dictated by the Victorian mourning etiquette). However, with her husband deceased and a child who is the son and heir of Downton, her role, more than ever, is pivotal to the survival of the estate.
‘Mary has to rebuild her life in a society that is changing,’ says Lord Julian Fellowes, the writer and creator of the show. Michelle Dockery returns to play the part of the steely yet sensitive Lady Mary. The actress, who in real life speaks with a broad Essex accent (rather than plummy aristocratic tones), admits that she has missed her friend Dan while fi lming but has enjoyed the challenging new turns of Fellowes’s screenplay.
Life appears to be more exciting for Lady Mary’s younger sister, Lady Edith. Perhaps more so than any of the characters, her existence has been transformed by the war and the emerging autonomy of women. A timid, often overlooked middle sister in the fi rst series, she has grown to become quite the woman about town with her own newspaper column.
Left: Lady Edith. Right: newcomer Lady Rose. Inset: Dame Kiri Te KanawaActress Laura Carmichael, who plays the part, has been spotted filming in glamorous locations around London. Charles Edwards returns as editor Michael Gregson, who, at the end of the last series, was seen expressing aff ection for the Earl’s daughter. After once being jilted at the altar, will she fi nally achieve lasting love?
Lady Rose is a fresh face at Downton. The Dowager Countess’s greatniece has moved to Downton from her family home in Scotland. Young and beautiful, she is ready to take on the rebel quota previously fi lled by the passionate Lady Sybil.
As already hinted at by her partyloving ways in previous episodes, she is eager to embrace life as a bright young thing of the 1920s. This is the fi rst major role for actress Lily James, who trained at the same acting school as fellow cast member Michelle Dockery. She is bound to secrecy on the specifics but has revealed that she was thrilled to be thrown in the deep end with storylines comprising much scandal and typical Downton drama. A
fter the odd criticism for the overly tragic happenings in the last series, Julian Fellowes’s fourth-season screenplay runs, by his own admission, ‘at a slightly more subtle pace’.
Early reviews of the new series have been glowing, with the attractive Downton ladies and men – from both upstairs and down – poised to captivate the world once more.
DOWNTON’S FIRST REAL CHARACTER
Appearing as Downtown’s first real-life character, worldrenowned opera star Dame Kiri Te Kanawa shines as Dame Nellie Melba in the upcoming series. One of the biggest stars of the era, Australian-born Dame Nellie was a famous operatic soprano. Dame Kiri will perform some of Nellie’s favourite music on the show. Dame Kiri appears in a party scene at the house, performing numbers she chose herself after studying one of Nellie’s diaries. She admits she was nervous, but the cast and crew are said to have been blown away....AND HERE ARE DOWNTON'S CHAPS
CHARLES BLAKE (JULIAN OVENDEN) The handsome Charles Blake comes to Downton as part of a study to see how large estates may face diffiCulties in the changing society of the 1920s. Lady Mary thinks his presence at her home is the key to saving Downton, but does Blake have the same idea? If this well-established West End star is to become a potential love interest for Mary, he is sure to be in for a bumpy ride. JACK ROSS (GARY CARR) Carr’s appearance as a charming jazz singer from Chicago is perhaps the biggest indication yet that Downton is entering the modern era. The fi rst-ever black cast member will impress the ladies with his singing when Lady Rose and Lady Mary see him perform in a club on a visit to London. A nod to the roaring attitudes of the era, his addition heralds change in the world of Downton.
LORD GILLINGHAM (TOM CULLEN) A childhood friend of Lady Mary, Lord Gillingham has seen Downton through highs and lows. He is attempting to live the life his well-to-do family expects of him, while trying to keep up with the demands of the modern world. No doubt the dashing new addition to the series will cheer up Lady Mary after the death of her husband.
MR GREEN (NIGEL HARMAN) Most recently appearing as Lord Farquaad in Shrek The Musical, and best known for his heart-throb role in EastEnders, Harman will be the newest addition downstairs. Playing a visiting valet, he will be charming the ladies of Downton (if rumours are to be believed). Sadly for us, a picture of him in costume is yet to be released.