As we all anxiously wait for Downton Abbey season three, I just wanted to make sure we're all up to speed on who the new cast members are for the upcoming season:
Eragon star Ed Speleers will play a new footman named Jimmy.
Ed Speleers
Matt Milne ("War Horse") is a new footman named Alfred.
Matt Milne
In addition to the new footmen, Cara
Theobald will play a new kitchen maid named Ivy and Lucille Sharp will
play the maid for Lady Cora's mother Martha (Shirley MacLaine) named
Miss Reid.
Lucille Sharp Cara Theobald
In this picture from the set, we have two of the new cast members, Cara Theobald and Matt Milne:
Here we see Lucille Sharp in the front seat & Shirley MacLaine in the back:
I haven't seen anything with Ed Speleers on set yet so lets keep our eyes out Downtonians!
Downton Abbey's Michelle Dockery is featured in this weeks Grazia Daily special Jubilee-themed issue:
The New Rule Britannia Crew (page 72!) features 25 women, all
British, all on the cusp of super-stardom. How did we possibly whittle
down all the incredible home-grown talent to just 25 names? In true
patriotic style, we asked the most prominent names in British culture to
nominate them. We covered everything from fashion, film, politics,
literature, art, theatre and music, approaching some of the biggest and
most high profile names in these fields.
Like who, we hear you cry? Well, for starters,
chick-lit-author-turned-Conservative-supremo, Louise Mensch picked a
political protégée; Chloe Smith. At 30, Chloe, Economic Secretary to the
Treasury, is the country’s youngest MP. Louise has piped her as
potentially ‘the first women Chancellor.’ Meanwhile Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes nominated his small screen darling, Michelle Dockery (that’s Lady Mary Crawley to you).
The stars of Downton Abbey
took a well 'urn-ed' tea break from filming series three of the hit
show, to launch Marie Curie Cancer Care's Blooming Great Tea Party (http://www.mariecurie.org.uk/teaparty).
The cast of servants, including new characters Cara Theobold and Matt
Milne, enjoyed putting their feet up and having a cuppa in aid of
charity.
Jim Carter who plays Butler Charles Carson said:
"What could be more Downton Abbey than a good British tea party? We
rather enjoyed having a break from serving the Earl and Countess of
Grantham! We’re encouraging everyone to do the same, and pop the kettle
on and have their own Blooming Great Tea Party for Marie Curie Cancer
Care this summer."
The new characters look perfect!! Cara Theobold is playing a new kitchen maid called Ivy and Matt Milne, the star of War Horse, plays a footman named Alfred.
Downton Abbey's Elizabeth McGovern narrates the audio version of the book, The Chaperone, by Laura Moriarty, due out June 5th. Ms. McGovern has also optioned the movie rights to the book. Here is the synopsis from Amazon:
On a summer's day in 1922 Cora Carlisle boards a train from Wichita,
Kansas, to New York City, leaving behind a marriage that's not as
perfect as it seems and a past that she buried long ago. She is charged
with the care of a stunning young girl with a jet-black fringe and eyes
wild and wise beyond her fifteen years. This girl is hungry for stardom
and Cora for something she doesn't yet know. Cora will be many things in
her lifetime - an orphan, a mother, a wife, a mistress - but in New
York she is a chaperone and her life is about to change. It is here
under the bright lights of Broadway, in a time when prohibition reigns
and speakeasies with their forbidden whispers behind closed doors
thrive, that Cora finds what she has been searching for. It is here, in a
time when illicit thrills and daring glamour sizzle beneath the laws of
propriety that her life truly begins. It is here that Cora and her
charge, Louise Brooks, take their first steps towards their dreams.
A sneak peak of Elizabeth reading the first chapter is available here.
Yes you read that right...Lady Cora is set to play another 'Cora' on the big screen. I think the story sounds great!
Matthew Crawley aka Dan Stevens, will present the womenswear award alongside Jessica Chastain at the Council of Fashion Designers of America Awards on Monday, June 4th. Seth Myers will be hosting and Johnny Depp is expected to be there to pick up his Fashion Icon Award. The awards will be broadcast on Style.com on Tuesday, June 5th.
Dan & Johnny in the same room...now that's winning!
Here is Glamour's backstage interview with Jessica Brown Findlay, the 2012 Glamour UK TV Actress Of The Year. In it Jessica mentions heading to New York this month to film Lullaby and going back to NY in the Fall to film Winters Tale.
Joanne Froggatt, took "a break" from her Downton Abbey corset for the evening lol, here she speaks to Kate Thornton on the BAFTA TV Awards red carpet ahead of presenting the Features award later that night.
Ted Danson has joked he is "a repressed butler" at heart.
The actor claims that he constantly looks after his family, so much so that they forget he has another profession.
The CSI: Crime Scene Investigation star loves British TV series Downton
Abbey and has explained why he would play a loyal servant rather than
aristocracy if he was part of the historical drama.
"I'm a huge
fan! I was heartbroken when it was over. [If I was on the show I'd be]
Definitely downstairs though. Because I am a butler in life, I really am
a repressed butler. I butler for my family, that's what I do," he told
British TV show Daybreak.
The 2012 Glamour UK Women of the Year Awards were held last night in London. Downton Abbey's Lady Mary, Michelle Dockery, was given the Editor's Special award while her on-screen sister, Jessica Brown-Findlay, won the Best UK TV Actress. Way to go ladies!
Jessica's award was presented to her by British actor Jason Isaacs
For the millions of us who won't be going to England this summer, this will be the next best thing! Living the British life vicariously through PBS. Be sure to check out their 'Best of Britain' page here.
“This summer, as the world’s attention
turns to London, viewers can delve into the fact and fiction of all things
British through four fascinating history shows and a new season of MASTERPIECE
MYSTERY! It’s just a warm up for the fall, when PBS turns Sundays
into a destination for drama with back-to-back episodes of the hit CALL THE
MIDWIFE paired with MASTERPIECE CLASSIC ‘Upstairs Downstairs’,”
said John F. Wilson,Senior Vice President & Chief TV Programming Executive.
Series Premieres:
QUEEN & COUNTRY,Sundays, July 1-22,
8:00-9:00 p.m. ET – This summer, all eyes are on Queen Elizabeth II,
Britain’s second longest-reigning monarch, as she marks her Diamond Jubilee. PBS celebrates her 60 years on the
throne with Trevor McDonald’s QUEEN & COUNTRY,offering viewers a look
at the customs surrounding the monarchy – from Changing the Guard at
Buckingham Palace to the Queen’s royal visits — and tours of
historic royal places.
MICHAEL WOOD’S STORY OF ENGLAND,Tuesdays, July 3, 8:00-10:00 and
July 10-17, 8:00-9:00 p.m. ET – Historian Michael Wood filters the
2,000-year history of England
through the story of one small town located in the heart of the country:
Kibworth, Leicestershire. From the Roman era to the Norman Conquest, the Black
Death, the English Civil War, the Industrial Revolution and World War II, the
four-part series intertwines the local and national narratives, marking the
milestones that changed the town and country forever.
New Episodes of
Popular Shows:
MASTERPIECE MYSTERY!presents new episodes of its
best British mysteries. With the premiere of “Endeavour,”Sunday,
July 1, 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET,viewers get the back story of famed detective Inspector
Morse. Shaun Evans stars as the rookie constable who nearly
resigns, until a murder turns up that only he could solve. Then Kevin WhatelyandLaurence Fox return as Inspector Lewis and DS
Hathaway in “Inspector Lewis, Series V.” In four new
episodes, airing Sundays, July 8-29, 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET,the two tackle
murder and mayhem in seemingly perfect academic haven ofOxford.
British Favorites
Return to PBS:
QUEEN VICTORIA’S EMPIRE,Tuesdays, June 19-26, 2012, 8:00-10:00 p.m.
ET, takes a look at England’s transformation from
a small island nation into an industrial superpower. With personal accounts and
lush re-enactments, it is a story of influential men and a powerful queen who
ruled over one-fifth of the world’s population for a remarkable 64 years.
MONARCHY: THE ROYAL FAMILY AT WORK, Mondays, June 11, 2012, 9:00-11:00 p.m. ET
and June 18-July 9, 10:00-11:00 p.m. ET,
provides an exclusive look inside the modern British monarchy. As she turned
80, Queen Elizabeth II allowed creation of this intimate series, which showsthe
commonwealth’s most famous family as they travel abroad, work at the
palace and meet people from all walks of life.
This Fall on PBS:
CALL THE MIDWIFE, Sundays, September 30 to
November 4, 2012, 8:00-9:00 p.m. ET– Based on the best-selling
trilogy by the late Jennifer Worth, CALL THE MIDWIFE is a fascinating portrayal
of birth, life and death in a world drastically different from ours. This
six-part series offers an unconventional twist to Sunday-night British dramas
and brings mid-20th-century London to life, focusing on the joys and
hardships of a group of midwives working in London’s East End.
MASTERPIECE
CLASSIC “Upstairs Downstairs,” Season 2 Sundays, October 7 to November 11, 2012, 9:00-10:00 p.m. ET
The saga
continues at 165 Eaton Place, with new
characters upstairs and down, in a six-part sequel to the much-loved
MASTERPIECE series from the 1970s. Set in 1936, the lives of masters and
servants have never been so captivating, as two new arrivals make their mark
and Lady Agnes reveals a dark secret. Alex Kingston (“ER,”
“Doctor Who”) joins the cast. The six-part series follows MIDWIFE,
starting October 7. Viewers can catch up on the first season with a
three-hour marathon September 30.
About PBS PBS, with its nearly 360 member stations, offers all Americans the
opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television and online
content. Each month, PBS reaches nearly 123 million people through television
and more than 21 million people online, inviting them to experience the worlds
of science, history, nature and public affairs; to hear diverse viewpoints; and
to take front row seats to world-class drama and performances. PBS’ broad
array of programs has been consistently honored by the industry’s most
coveted award competitions. Teachers of children from pre-K through 12th
grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom
lessons to life. PBS’ premier children’s TV programming and its
website, pbskids.org, are parents’ and
teachers’ most trusted partners in inspiring and nurturing curiosity and
love of learning in children. More information about PBS is available atwww.pbs.org, one of the
leading dot-org websites on the Internet, or by followingPBS on Twitter,Facebookor through our apps
for mobile devices. Specific program information and updates for press
are available atpbs.org/pressroomor by followingPBS Pressroom on Twitter.
Ealing Studios, the studio where Downton Abbey films was awarded a Guinness World Record for being the oldest continuously operating film studio in the world. The cast & crew of Downton were on hand to present the award.
Gordon Innes from London & Partners commented: “After 110 years
of film-making this award marks the contribution this London icon has
produced not only for world cinema, but also our economy. Our capital
continues to be featured in some of the most inspiring and creative
films and from our research we know that one in ten overseas visitors
cite film as a reason to come to the capital, generating £1.9 billion in
revenue each year.”
Situated in Ealing, west London, the studios
have been making some of the most iconic and classic British cinema and
films for over a century. From the first screen version of Hamlet in
1912, through to the 1940’s and 1950’s classics, The Ladykillers, The
Lavender Hill Mob, Passport to Pimlico, and Kind Hearts and Coronets as
well as modern films such as The Importance of Being Earnest and the St
Trinian’s series, this working studio continues to develop and nurture
creative talent in the capital.
Hugh Bonneville talks Downton Abbey in this 2012 BAFTA TV Awards interview with RedCarpetNews. He was nominated in the Male Performance in a Comedy category for his role in the BBC Olympic comedy Twenty Twelve but lost to Darren Boyd.
And the lucky winner is.... 52 year old, Sandra Doshner, a retired medical technologist from Long Island.
She is a die-hard Downton Abbey fan and paid $20,000 to win the date with Mr Bates aka Brendon Coyle. That was four times the $5,000 asking price.
Brendan put himself up for auction to benefit the Origin Theater Company in NYC. He and the theater's artistic director, George Heslin, an Irishman from Limerick, have been friends since the early Nineties when they performed together on London's West End:
Here are a ton more pictures from the set of Downton Abbey season three. Looks like this is the picnic scene that was scheduled for a few weeks ago but cancelled due to weather. I'm hiding them under the cut:
Last night, Jimmy Fallon aired episode two of his hilarious Downton Abbey spoof 'Downton Sixbey'. This is even better then the first one! Whoopi Goldberg makes an appearance.
***UPDATE - We have even more new season three set pics here!
Since these pictures are spoilers, I'm hiding them under the cut for those people who don't want to be spoiled. I however love spoilers lol! So click the 'read more' link below to see the awesomeness :)
International celebrities, including the cast of Downton Abbey, have come to the aid of earthquake-stricken Court Theatre in New Zealand, . You can bid in this Downton Abbey poster, signed by pretty much the entire cast and series creator Julian Fellowes:
Own a piece of the international sensation Downton Abbey and help The Court Theatre reach its fundraising goal.
Photographic print. 30.5cm x 43.3cm.
Signed by:
Hugh Bonneville – Robert Crawley Elizabeth McGovern – Cora Crawley Penelope Wilton – Isobel Crawley Dan Stevens – Matthew Crawley Maggie Smith – Violet Crawley Jessica Brown Findlay – Sybil Crawley Laura Carmichael – Edith Crawley Michelle Dockery – Mary Crawley Jim Carter – Charles Carson Phyllis Logan – Elsie Hughes Brendan Coyle – John Bates Siobhan Finneran – Sarah O’Brien Rob James-Collier – Thomas Barrow Thomas Howes – William Mason Joanne Froggatt – Anna Smith/Bates Amy Nuttall – Ethel Parks Lesley Nicol – Beryl Patmore Sophie McShera – Daisy Mason/Robinson Christine Lohr – Mrs Bird
Julian Fellowes – Series Creator
There are also several Kelvin McMillan prints signed by Dame Maggie Smith up for auction as well. Check out all the auction items and help the Court Theater here.
