Downton Abbey
Downton Abbey is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. It first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United States on PBS, which supported its production as part of its Masterpiece Classic anthology, on 9 January 2011. The show ran for six series and fifty-two episodes, including five Christmas specials.
This article is about the series. For the 2019 film, see Downton Abbey (film).Downton Abbey
- Julian Fellowes
- Shelagh Stephenson
- Tina Pepler
- Hugh Bonneville
- Jessica Brown Findlay
- Laura Carmichael
- Jim Carter
- Brendan Coyle
- Michelle Dockery
- Siobhan Finneran
- Joanne Froggatt
- Phyllis Logan
- Thomas Howes
- Rob James-Collier
- Rose Leslie
- Elizabeth McGovern
- Sophie McShera
- Lesley Nicol
- Maggie Smith
- Dan Stevens
- Penelope Wilton
- Amy Nuttall
- Kevin Doyle
- Allen Leech
- Matt Milne
- Ed Speleers
- Lily James
- David Robb
- Cara Theobold
- Raquel Cassidy
- Tom Cullen
- Julian Ovenden
- Michael Fox
- Matthew Goode
- Harry Hadden-Paton
"Did I Make the Most of Loving You?"
United Kingdom
English
6
52 (list of episodes)
- Julian Fellowes
- Gareth Neame
- Rebecca Eaton
- Liz Trubridge
- Nigel Marchant
Gavin Struthers
47–93 minutes
26 September 2010 –
25 December 2015
The series, set on the fictional Yorkshire country estate of Downton Abbey between 1912 and 1926, depicts the lives of the aristocratic Crawley family and their domestic servants in the post-Edwardian era, and the effects the great events of the time have on their lives and on the British social hierarchy. These events include news of the sinking of the Titanic (first series); the outbreak of the First World War, the Spanish influenza pandemic, and the Marconi scandal (second series); the Irish War of Independence leading to the formation of the Irish Free State (third series); the Teapot Dome scandal (fourth series); and the British general election of 1923 and the Beer Hall Putsch (fifth series). The sixth and final series introduces the rise of the working class during the interwar period and hints at the eventual decline of the British aristocracy.
Downton Abbey has received acclaim from television critics and numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe Award for Best Miniseries or Television Film and a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Miniseries or Movie. It was recognised by Guinness World Records as the most critically acclaimed English-language television series of 2011. It earned 27 Primetime Emmy Award nominations after its first two series, the most for any international television series in the awards' history.[1] It was the most watched television series on both ITV and PBS, and became the most successful British costume drama since the 1981 television serial of Brideshead Revisited.[2]
On 26 March 2015, Carnival Films and ITV announced that the sixth series would be the last. It aired on ITV between 20 September 2015 and 8 November 2015. The final episode, the annual Christmas special, was broadcast on 25 December 2015. A film adaptation, a continuation of the series, was confirmed on 13 July 2018 and released in the United Kingdom on 13 September 2019, and in the United States on 20 September 2019. A second feature film, Downton Abbey: A New Era, was released in the United Kingdom on 29 April 2022 by Universal Pictures, and in the United States and Canada on 20 May 2022 by Focus Features.[3]
Home media[edit]
Streaming[edit]
The series was made available in its entirety on Netflix in June 2021. It has also been made available on Amazon Prime Video, Peacock, the PBS app and PBS.org with a PBS Passport subscription.[111][112]
Blu-ray and DVD[edit]
On 16 September 2011, two days before the UK premiere of the second series, it was reported by Amazon.com that the first series of Downton Abbey had become the highest selling DVD boxset of all time on the online retailer's website, surpassing popular American programmes such as The Sopranos, Friends and The Wire.[113]
Books[edit]
The World of Downton Abbey, a book featuring a behind-the-scenes look at Downton Abbey and the era in which it is set, was released on 15 September 2011. It was written by Jessica Fellowes (the niece of Julian Fellowes) and published by HarperCollins.[114][115]
A second book also written by Jessica Fellowes and published by HarperCollins, The Chronicles of Downton Abbey, was released on 13 September 2012. It is a guide to the show's characters through the early part of the third series.[116]
Four spin-off cookbooks have been published – The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook (2019), which features dishes from the Edwardian period researched by food historian Dr Annie Gray, The Official Downton Abbey Christmas Cookbook (2020) by Regula Ysewijn, The Official Downton Abbey Cocktail Book (2019) and The Official Downton Abbey Afternoon Tea Cookbook (2020).
Cultural impact[edit]
Some of the fashion items worn by characters on the show have seen a strong revival of interest in the UK and elsewhere during the show's run, including starched collars, midi skirts, beaded gowns, and hunting plaids.[119]
The Equality (Titles) Bill was an unsuccessful piece of legislation introduced in the UK Parliament in 2013 that would have allowed equal succession of female heirs to hereditary titles and peerages. It was nicknamed the "Downton Abbey law" because it addressed the same issue that affects Lady Mary Crawley, who cannot inherit the estate because it must pass to a male heir.
The decor used on Downton Abbey inspired US Representative Aaron Schock to redecorate his congressional offices in a more luxurious style.[120][121][122] He repaid the $40,000 cost of redecoration following scrutiny of his expenses and questions about his use of public money for personal benefit,[123] and subsequently resigned in March 2015.[124]