Downton Abbey series three: a treat even the internet can't spoil
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Version 0 of 1. Over the past few weeks, whether by stumbling upon a friend's Facebook rant or catching a careless headline, even the most vigilant US-based Downton Abbey fan could have had ruined a key moment of the drama's new season, which airs on PBS from Sunday. The season three finale aired in the UK in late November, before another series-defining twist found its way into the final minutes of last week's Christmas special. A casting announcement related to that twist ensured wide publicity for what should have been the season's most gasp-inducing surprise. But US viewers should be reassured: the build-up to these moments is still worth a weekly hour of grandiose language, gilded dinnerware and resplendent costumes. And this season, that class-conscious hour promises to deliver more of the much desired drama and early-20th century charm than the sometimes outlandish season two. A main draw this season is the introduction of the legendary Shirley MacLaine, who as Cora Crawley's American mother provides an entertaining foil to the Dowager Countess of Grantham, Maggie Smith. MacLaine's brash American sensibilities and the very British reaction from Cousin Violet serve a purpose for US viewers – each of MacLaine's conquests serves as a nice national-rallying point towards British viewers able to reel from developments in the Christmas special while US-based viewers still wait to see the much-anticipated wedding of Mary and Matthew. The impending nuptials and newly united couples (Matthew and Mary, Bates and Anna, Branson and Sybil) provide a warm foundation for the new season, after seven episodes overshadowed by the first world war. In the wake of the war and its wrenching surprises, season three will test how Lord Grantham handles his forceful grasp on tradition as the 1920s proceed. Visually, this setting will provide flapper-esque costumes and Jazz Age conditions for the restless Crawley women to embrace, anchored by the show's exceptionally talented costumers and setmakers. One thing Downton Abbey's American audience has over its British counterparts is the promise in advance of a fourth season and a Christmas special. British broadcaster ITV only confirmed in November that the show would be renewed, just as the third season was wrapping up. The announcement was one of two bits of Downton Abbey information to appear online this winter that were safe for Americans to see. The other was this tremendous photo. Will season four, though, arrive after another spoiler-spilling gap? It seems so, as PBS executives have expressed faith in American Abbey addicts. "The Downton audience is very loyal," PBS's vice president of programming, Beth Hoppe, told the Hollywood Reporter. "They're coming back no matter what, and they're unlikely to be jumping on the internet and trying to watch it illegally." As you wait for this Sunday's Downton-fest, here's the season preview from the Guardian's Viv Groskop: Pilfered snuff boxes and ironed newspapers at the ready! Downton Abbey series three is upon us. What an exquisitely agonising wait it has been. There is a fear this series might actually be good, thereby spoiling all the cynical fun we had laughing at the series two plotlines involving amnesiac cousins with burnt-off faces, and war injuries that caused impotence and paralysis but then turned out to be temporary; easily cured by the sudden appearance of a Tingle. And – with a spoiler alert! – here's the Guardian's episode one blog post... only to be clicked on as the credits roll on Sunday. |