Downton Abbey
Another Downton Abbey Shocker! The Unthinkable Happens To One Of The Beloved Characters!
Courtesy/PBS
If you have not watched last night’s episode of Downton Abbey, you do not want to read any further, because we detail a harrowing plot point that was controversial in the U.K when season four played out a few months back.
In the episode, the beloved downstairs head housemaid Anna, played brilliantly by Joanne Froggatt, suffers a terrible fate! And fans of the series had already seen her suffer by watching her husband, Bates (Brendan Coyle), be jailed for a crime he did not commit thanks to his evil ex-wife throughout all of season three!
In the season four second episode, the Crawleys throw a lavish party which is the centerpiece for much of the drama on the episode, and during it we are introduced to Lord Gillingham (Tom Cullen), who is the first potential new suitor for Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery), since Matthew’s death!
Lord Gillingham has with him his valet/butler named Mr. Green. Anna seems to be the flirtation or obsession of the guy, and when Anna excuses herself to go downstairs to take something for her headache, the butler follows her and within seconds he is attacking her, grabbing her by the hair, taking her to the backroom, and raping her! This all plays out while Melba, the opera singer, is performing at the party! Thus, no one can hear her screams, and she is downstairs!
Later, when Mrs. Hughes (Phyllis Logan) discovers Anna, the victim is now terrified that if she told Bates the truth he might try to kill the man and he would be sent back to jail, so she convinces Mrs. Hughes to keep quiet. And sadly at the end of the episode, she can’t even let Bates touch her!
TV Guide spoke with Downton EP Gareth Neame about the controversial plot twist that outraged so many viewers when it first aired in England! Neame related, “Like the death of the Matthew Crawley character, audiences are very protective of these characters and view them as an extension of their own families. The big thing about our show is there being big twists and surprises, and this (incident) is perpetrated on possibly the most beloved character of all: the one with the warmest heart.”
As far as why this was thrown into the story for Anna, Neame stood firm that: “It is not us just being flashy and trying to get attention It is definitely something that was an issue at the time and women did not have any of the recourse that they would have now. Anna is in a terrible predicament that gives us a great undercurrent that runs through our fourth season.”
So what did you think of the shocking turn of events for Anna on last night’s Downton Abbey? Weigh-in!
In a statement from her sons as shared by Smith’s publicist, Clair Dobbs: “It is with great sadness we have to announce the death of Dame Maggie Smith. She passed away peacefully in hospital early this morning, Friday 27th September. An intensely private person, she was with friends and family at the end, She leaves two sons and five loving grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the wonderful staff at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for their care and unstinting kindness during her final days.”
In 1979, Dame Maggie was awarded a second Academy Award, this time for Best Supporting Actress, for her performance in Neil Simon’s California Suite. She has also received British Academy Film Awards for her work, including for her roles in 1985’s A Room with a View and 1987’s The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne.
Photo: JPI
Smith was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1990, and from then on was widely known as “Dame Maggie Smith” Audiences got to see the widely-acclaimed actress in the US and the UK, once again when she took on the role of Violet Crawley, the Dowager Countess of Grantham in Downton Abbey. The acclaimed period drama about the British aristocracy ran for six seasons, 2010-2015 in the UK and into the beginning of 2016 in the US. She received three Primetime Emmy Awards for the role, and returned to reprise the part for the Downton Abbey 2019 feature-length film.
Photo: BBC
Several of Smith’s Downton Abbey co-stars have shared their grief, including Michelle Dockery (ex-Lady Mary Crawley) who expressed,”There was no one quite like Maggie. I feel tremendously lucky to have known such a maverick. She will be deeply missed and my thoughts are with her family.”
Hugh Bonneville (ex-Robert Crawley) who played Smith’s on-screen son in the series, wrote, “Anyone who ever shared a scene with Maggie will attest to her sharp eye, sharp wit and formidable talent. She was a true legend of her generation and thankfully will live on in so many magnificent screen performances. My condolences to her boys and wider family.”
Throughout her life, Smith was married twice. Once to Robert Stephens, and later to playwright Beverley Cross, from 1975 until his death in 1998. She is survived by her two sons, Toby and Chris.
Share your remembrances and your condolences for the great Dame Maggie Smith via the comment section below.
So many of us loved the soap opera that was Downton Abbey when it aired on PBS and ITV for six seasons. Then, a few years later in 2019, the highly-awaited Downton Abbey movie hit movie theatres near you.
Now comes word from Focus Features that a big-screen sequel is in the works and is slated for release this Christmas in December of 2021.
In a social media announcement, the film company shared: “We’re thrilled to announce that Julian Fellowes and the entire Downton cast are back for #DowntonAbbey2, with Hugh Dancy, Laura Haddock, Nathalie Baye and Dominic West joining! See the film in theaters this Christmas.”
While, of course, no plot has been teased or given away, Fellowes will write the screenplay, with Simon Curtis (My Week with Marilyn) set to direct.
“There’s no place like home for the holidays, and we can’t imagine a better gift than getting to reunite with Julian, (producer) Gareth Neame and the entire Downton family in 2021 to bring the Crawleys back home for their fans,” said Focus Features chairman Peter Kujawsk in a statement.
So, excited to see your favorites and some potential new ones in the all-new Downton Abbey Movie later this year? Comment below.
Finally, Downton Abbey fans get a preview of the upcoming motion picture that is set for release in theatres on September 20th.
What we know is that the The film is set in 1927 and the plot revolves around the King and Queen of England coming to the estate for a visit and so … the Crawleys must prepare their arrival. In fact, they have to bring back Mr. Carson to help!
Featured in the trailer are series stars, who are also back for the film: Hugh Bonneville, Laura Carmichael, Michelle Dockery, Matthew Goode, Joanne Froggatt, Jim Carter and Maggie Smith.
Series creator Julian Fellowes wrote the script and Michael Engler will serve as director. Engler directed the two-hours series finale.
As fans know, Downton Abbey ran on PBS Masterpiece for six seasons here in the U.S.
Check out the trailer, and then let us know if you are excited to see the movie? Comment below.
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Great show but sad that such a loving and caring person in the series has not be given a happy moment with Mr. Bates (husband). I hope she is not going to be pregnant with the sleeze bags child…Love Anna and Mr. Bates…
I agree with you, Sal.
I felt something was going to happen the moment they were together…but not this…im a first time watcher and i havent learned all their names but im hooked!!!
Go to your local PBS website….they usually have a good section on the “Abbey”….if I recall they even had a character chart in the first few seasons. I think they save all the info from past episodes, so you may be able to get up to speed that way. Also, believe it or not, Wikipedia had a very detailed page on all the plotlines, roles and actors since the start of the series. I used that as a resource in the beginning to figure out where so many of the familiar faces had appeared before “Downton.” I know that website is not necessarily the most popular or accurate, but it does have some good pop culture stuff……you can definitely get a quick answer there for TV and movie queries, plus other useful links. By the way, get well soon, jimh! Hope you are feeling better! ; )
I was angry and want the perpetrator to pay for his crime against Anna!
Don’t worry….he WILL!!!! (No spoilers though…..)
I was disturbed by this turn of events. I know DA is somewhat of a soap but if they do a who’s baby is it story I really feel it is something outside the normal writing that has been done in the past.
Poor Anna seems to be this season’s put upon female…first the lie about the burnt clothing, now this…
This season’s put upon female??? Have you watched the prior seasons? The character of Anna has been put through the wringer throughout the entire series with the rape being the ultimate misdeed on her.
Like most well written serials, Downton Abbey definitely has the “nice girl who is always facing troubles” and that clearly is Anna. It reminds me of daytime characters from the past….Jo on “Search for Tomorrow”; Kim on “As the World Turns”; and, until the past few years, Sharon on “Young & Restless” are just a few examples.
The show is very well written and I like it. However, I really hope that Julian Fellowes avoided the urge to twist the plot by having Anna become pregnant from this incident. That is a plot turn that we’ve seen too often in the past and seems played out to me.
As a long-time soap fan, I find most of ‘Downton Abbey’ to be stale and recycled. The timing of the storylines seems to always avoid real drama in favor of shock value and some of the plotting is just downright clunky. But that’s just my perception of it.
If you aren’t madly in love with the show, then don’t watch it. For lowly people like us, who love fairy tales. Let it be. Some of it is contrived. The money that was inherited was a little over the top. But fairy tale love affairs are like that. England is a romantic well mannered fairy tale to us who live across the pond anyway. Let us have our fantasy, let us enjoy the fairy tale. We were jipped out of the real deal with Diana and Charles so let us have this fantasy.
Who’s preventing you from enjoying it? I can dislike and you can still enjoy it.
Of course I am sorry that Anna is suffering but these scenes were well written and played – terrifying and not the least bit graphic for which I was thankful.
I saw “Downton” last year when it aired on ITV…Season 4 is amazing, from the Anna and Bates story, to many, many others, that have yet to air in the US….
Don’t tell me, she’s going to become pregnant.
My husband doesn’t watch Daytime Soaps and even he predicts Anna will end up being pregnant. Please JF, say it ain’t so!’
Pity that Ethel wasn’t still hanging about the Abbey….she certainly could have shown Green a good time, and it might have spared the lovely Anna this latest tribulation.
I was shocked, knowing that back then not much would be done about something like that. Raping a woman that has no position or money meant nothing. However my feelings today would say call the police and have him arrested. That’s not really an option. Plus manners back then would prohibit the Crawleys from saying too much. Her husband on the other hand would want revenge. It looks like he committed the perfect crime and in reality I think he did the world a favour if he did knock the man in front of the train. My opinion is say nothing and be thankful you have your husband. Say nothing and keep your suspicions to yourself. A bad man fell in front of a train and won’t be raping anyone ever again.