I kept seeing tweets with the hashtag #DowntonAbbey go through my Twitter feed and I said I must be missing out and need to check this out. When it comes to shows and series’, I’ll admit, I’m somewhat of a Reality Junkie (Yes, even trashy) — but I do wrap my brain cells around different types of shows. I love variety. I decided to subscribe to Hulu Plus and Netflix (to see what both memberships were about) and this was the first series I decided to watch. Can you say…ADDICTED!? Yes, from the very first episode. No, I’m obsessed! I remember lying in my bed with my iPad and I don’t think I left the room, but for two reasons and one was for food. Downton had me hooked AND in tears the first episode and I kinda felt like a punk. I was like, “How is this show gonna do me like this…the FIRST episode? REALLY?” lol My love for Downton is so deep that I even have the theme/intro song as my ringtone. Don’t judge! Do people still do that though? You know what, I don’t even care, I love mine and I’m not changing it!
A little about Downton
Downton Abbey is a British period drama television series created by Julian Fellowes and co-produced by Carnival Films and Masterpiece. It first aired on ITV in the United Kingdom on 26 September 2010 and on PBS in the United States on 9 January 2011 as part of the Masterpiece Classic anthology.
The series, set in the fictional Yorkshire country estate of Downton Abbey, depicts the lives of the aristocratic Crawley family and their servants in the post-Edwardian era — with the great events in history having an effect on their lives and on the British social hierarchy. Such events depicted throughout the series include news of the sinking of the RMS Titanic in the first series; the outbreak of World War I, the Spanish influenza pandemic, and the Marconi scandal in the second series; and the Interwar period and the formation of the Irish Free State in the third series.
Downton Abbey has received critical acclaim from television critics and won numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe Award for Best Miniseries or Television Film and a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Miniseries. You can read more about it here.
Storyline
Lord Crawley sees his family heritage, especially the grand country home Downton Abbey, as his mission in life. The death of his heir aboard the Titanic means distant cousin Matthew Crawley, a Manchester lawyer, suddenly is next in line and accepts moving onto the vast estate with his even more modernist, socially engaged mother, who clashes with his lordship’s domineering, conservative mother, the dowager. Marrying off the daughters is another concern. Meanwhile, the butler presides over a staff which serves the family, but also lead most of their entire lives in the servants’ quarters, intriguing amongst themselves. (via IMDB)
A Few of My Faves!
It’s hard to choose a favorite, but Lady Sybil has to be one of them. She’s such a beautiful, charming, young woman who is way ahead of her time. She doesn’t care about rules and she can’t be put in a box, because she’s destined for purpose. She has such amazing style, personality, drive, and desire to provide greatness for the greater good of others (especially women). I adore this girl!
The Crawley Sisters — (Lady Edith, Lady Mary, and Lady Sybil) what can I say. You can’t really talk about one without the other. They all play a pivotal role in each others lives and to the lives of those at Downton.
John Bates. Such an admirable, courageous character who will capture your heart early on in Season 1.
I had to save the best for last! You absolutely cannot have Downton Abbey without Maggie Smith playing the role of Dowager Countess of Grantham. I’ve always loved her, but in Downton she’s absolutely HILARIOUS and her facial expressions tell it all! She truly had to truly grow on me in this role. At first I thought she was a bit brash, but now I couldn’t have her any other way.
Here are The Top 10 Maggie Moments! And you will see why I LOVE her so much!
I absolutely do not want to give it all way so you’ll just have to watch it like me. It’s available on Netflix and Hulu for a limited time. It is my understanding Amazon now has exclusive rights to the series unless of course you are an Amazon subscriber, you can catch up. I can’t wait to get started with Season 3 so I can be prepared for Season 4!
Where have you been? Under a rock? The last episode of Season 3 broke my heart! Can’t wait until Season 4 starts! Hurry up and catch up ma’am, please lol! I’m a PBS junkie, so I’ve been watching from the beginning.. I even dressed up for a few episodes lol
Lol!!! Hey, don’t trip now…I’m almost caught up! I’m trying to decide if I want to buy season 3 on DVD or through Amazon stream. I caught it on tv but I didn’t want to ruin it by watching, plus I would’ve missed dvr’ing a few episodes. I know I do want the collection!
I can’t help being a little sassy, ma’am! You know I’m fanatic about only a few shows. Scandal is my top one, but Downton Abbey is a close second. I just love the culture of the time period, although I understand I would not have even been in the servants’ quarters LOL! But it’s beautifully executed. The storyline is intriguing, the characters are so colorful and quirky. The costumes are OUTSTANDING! Let me know when you get to the end of Season 3… you can cry on my shoulder LOL!
I’ve been looking for something new to watch, I’ll check tho out!!