Masterpiece Theatre

Masterpiece (formerly known as Masterpiece Theatre) is a drama anthology television series produced by WGBH Boston. It premiered on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) on January 10, 1971, making it America's longest-running weekly prime time drama series. The series has presented numerous acclaimed British productions. Many of these are produced by the BBC, but the line-up has also included programs shown on the commercial services ITV and Channel 4.

Overview

Masterpiece is best known for presenting adaptations of novels and biographies, but it also shows original television dramas. The first title to air was The First Churchills, starring Susan Hampshire as Sarah Churchill. Other programs presented on the series include The Six Wives of Henry VIII; Elizabeth R; I, Claudius; Upstairs, Downstairs; The Duchess of Duke Street; The Citadel; The Jewel in the Crown; Reckless, House of Cards; Traffik; and Jeeves and Wooster. More recent popular titles include Prime Suspect; The Forsyte Saga; Sherlock; and Downton Abbey.

The theme music played during the opening credits is the Fanfare-Rondeau from “Symphonies and Fanfares for the King’s Supper” by French composer Jean-Joseph Mouret. The theme was performed by Collegium Musicum de Paris. Roland Douatte was the conductor. It was recorded in 1954 by Vogue Records in Paris, France, and was later remastered in stereo and re-released by Nonesuch records in the 1960s.

During the first seasons in the 1970s, the theme music accompanied varying closeup shots of a waving British flag, which panned out into a still image of a British flag on a staff serving as the P in "Masterpiece." In the late 1970s the opening video switched to views of antique books and other literary artifacts.

In 1980, Masterpiece gained a sister series, Mystery!, featuring a mix of contemporary and classic British detective and crime series, such as The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple, and Touching Evil. In 2000, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the show, it presented Masterpiece: The American Collection, nine works by American writers, including Thornton Wilder’s Our Town, starring Paul Newman.

Awards and nominations

One of television’s most honored series, the various shows aired on Masterpiece have garnered numerous Emmys, Peabodys.

In 2013, TV Guide ranked it #3 in its list of the 60 Greatest Dramas of All Time and #16 in its list of the 60 Greatest Shows of All Time.

History

The success of the broadcast of the 1967 version of The Forsyte Saga on NET (the precursor of PBS) led Stanford Calderwood, then serving as president of WGBH, to investigate whether the BBC would sell programs to the station. Suggestions for the series format came from, among others, Frank Gillard in England[4] and Christopher Sarson in the US. In looking for an underwriter for the series, Calderwood eventually met with Herb Schmertz of Mobil Corporation. Schmertz was able to gain funding for the show and he and several other men, including Frank Marshall, met in London and made a selection of programs to be broadcast.[5]

Decision on the format of the show were finalized and the series premiered on Jan. 10, 1971, with the first episode of The First Churchills. The series was hosted by British/American broadcaster/journalist Alistair Cooke until 1992; Pulitzer Prize-winning author Russell Baker hosted from 1992 to 2004. From 2004 to 2008, it was broadcast without a host.

The original series producer was Sarson. He was succeeded in 1973 by Joan Wilson. The current series producer, Rebecca Eaton, took over in 1985 after Wilson’s death from cancer.

Format change

Logo used immediately before the title change.

In 2008, the word “Theatre” was dropped, and the show, officially known as Masterpiece, was split into three different sections. Masterpiece Classic was initially hosted by Gillian Anderson;[7] the following year, Laura Linney stepped into the role of host.[8] Masterpiece Mystery! is hosted by Alan Cumming.[9] Masterpiece Contemporary was initially hosted by Matthew Goode;[10] he was replaced by David Tennant [11] in 2009.

All three versions received their own opening sequences and theme music with a common signature based upon the Rondeau by Mouret. In the opening to the “Classic” strand of shows, the word “Theatre” appears for a brief moment, apparently in order to maintain WGBH's trademark registration on the former name[12] (in 2011, the show’s 40th anniversary, the opening was altered to show “Classic” briefly before showing “40 years”). The theme music was composed by Man Made Music, Inc; the opening sequences were designed by Kyle Cooper of Prologue.

Funding

From its 1971 premiere, the series was underwritten by Mobil (which later became ExxonMobil). After 25 years of support, the series added the funder’s name to its title. ExxonMobil ended its sponsorship in 2004, and the series remained without a corporate sponsor until 2011, when Franklin Templeton Investments signed as a sponsor. The show is currently funded by Viking River Cruises, Ralph Lauren Corporation, the Masterpiece Trust,[13] the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and by contributions to various PBS stations from, as PBS puts it, “Viewers Like You”.

The Best of Masterpiece Theatre

In March 2007, to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the show, PBS aired an entertainment special produced and directed by Darcy Corcoran. The Best of Masterpiece was hosted by Derek Jacobi and featured interviews with Helen Mirren, Hugh Laurie, Damian Lewis, Robson Green, Ian Richardson, Gillian Anderson, Charles Dance, Alex Kingston, Anthony Andrews and Jean Marsh. The countdown special was based on more than 20,000 survey responses posted to the Masterpiece and PBS affiliate web sites, the top 12 series were:

At the end of the program Anthony Andrews thanked the audience for voting the 1981 serial Brideshead Revisited as the seventh favorite series. He then pointed out that it had not aired as a part of Masterpiece Theatre. Rather, it had aired as a part of the PBS series entitled Great Performances.

Parodies

  • A series of film, theatre, and television show parodies were shown on Sesame Street as "Monsterpiece Theater", hosted by Alistair Cookie (an alter ego of Cookie Monster) in reference to Alistair Cooke. The theme music for Monsterpiece Theater (composed by Sam Pottle) was similar to the theme composed by Mouret.
  • On the 1976 Captain and Tennille TV variety show, a weekly parody sketch spoof of “Masterpiece” was featured called "Masterjoke Theatre" with a different celebrity guest each week playing the host Allistar Banister who before each part of the "Masterpiece" story put on a Groucho Marx-style glasses with mustache disguise.
  • On Saturday Night Live, Dan Aykroyd, playing the high-bred but low-brow Leonard Pinth-Garnell, hosted "Bad Theatre", in which horrible, pseudo-intellectual skits were presented.
  • Disney Channel had a show titled "Mousterpiece Theater" hosted by George Plimpton featuring classic Disney cartoons.
  • During the first two seasons of the NBC comedy Mama's Family, Harvey Korman appeared at the beginning of each episode as Alistair Quince, who would soberly introduce the program in the style of Masterpiece Theatre.
  • On In Living Color during Season 5 a sketch called "Parody of Masterpiece" aired in which Jamie Foxx and David Alan Grier recited the lyrics of popular gangster rap songs of the early 1990s by artist such as Dr. Dre and Ice Cube. Cast member Marc Wilmore was the host imitating James Earl Jones
  • The Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode "Storyteller" opened with the character of Andrew Wells introducing the episode in the style of Masterpiece Theatre.
  • In the film Heartburn (1986), Rachel (played by Meryl Streep), at two points in the story, is watching a Masterpiece Theatre style program, wherein she imagines that the Alistair Cooke-esque host (played by John Wood) is narrating the story of her own life.
  • Tracey Ullman's television special Tracey Ullman: A Class Act (1992) starts out with the famous opening fanfare from the series and a set made up to look like Masterpiece's with Tracey Ullman "standing in for Alistair Cooke."
  • The sitcom My Name Is Earl had an alternative reality themed episode called "Bad Karma" in which Jason Lee (Earl) introduces the episode in a set made to look like that of Masterpiece Theatre. While there Lee shows the viewers that he really is on a set and not in a real room.
  • The South Park episode Pip is based on Great Expectations. The episode is hosted by Malcolm McDowell a la Alistair Cooke.

Mastepiece logo.PNG Also known as Masterpiece Theatre
(1971-2008) Genre Anthology Presented by Alistair Cooke (1971–1992)
Russell Baker (1992–2004)
Gillian Anderson (Masterpiece Classic, 2008)
Alan Cumming (Masterpiece Mystery)
Matthew Goode (Masterpiece Contemporary, 2008)
Laura Linney (Masterpiece Classic, 2009)
David Tennant (Masterpiece Contemporary, 2009) Theme music composer Jean-Joseph Mouret Opening theme Sinfonies de Fanfares: Rondeau Country of origin United States Broadcast Original channel PBS Original run January 10, 1971 – present


Downton Abbey


Downton Abbey is a British period drama television series created by Julian Fellowes and co-produced by Carnival Films and Masterpiece.[1] It first aired on ITV in the United Kingdom and Ireland on 26 September 2010 and on PBS in the United States on 9 January 2011 as part of the Masterpiece Classic anthology. Four complete series have been aired so far; the fifth began airing in the United Kingdom on 21 September 2014, and in Ireland on 24 September 2014. It will begin airing in the United States on 4 January 2015.[2][3]

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 the First World War, the Spanish influenza pandemic, and the Marconi scandal in the second series; the interwar period and the formation of the Irish Free State in the third series; the Teapot Dome scandal in the fourth series; and the United Kingdom general election of 1923 and the Beer Hall Putsch in the fifth 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 or Movie. It was recognised by Guinness World Records as the most critically acclaimed English-language television series of 2011. It earned the most nominations of any international television series in the history of the Primetime Emmy Awards, with twenty-seven in total (after two series).[4] It was the most watched television series on both ITV and PBS, and subsequently became the most successful British costume drama series since the 1981 television serial of Brideshead Revisited.[5] By the third series, it had become one of the most widely watched television drama shows in the world

Overview

The series is set in the fictional Downton Abbey, a Yorkshire country house, the seat of the Earl and Countess of Grantham, and follows the lives of the aristocratic Crawley family and their servants during the reign of King George V. Influenced by Edith Wharton's The Custom of the Country,[7] the first series opens at the end of the Edwardian era in 1912 with news of the family heir's death aboard the Titanic, spanning the two years before the Great War. The second series covered the years 1916 to 1919, and the 2011 Christmas Special covered the 1919 Christmas period, ending in early 1920. The third series picks up soon afterwards, covering 1920 through the autumn of 1921. The fourth series covers a six-month period between February and August 1922, while the 2013 Christmas special was set in summer 1923.

Production

Gareth Neame of Carnival Films conceived the idea of an Edwardian-era TV drama set in a country house and approached Fellowes, who had won an Academy Award for Best Writing (Original Screenplay) for Gosford Park. Although Fellowes was reluctant to work on another project resembling Gosford, within a few weeks he returned to Neame with an outline of the first series. Fellowes writes the scripts and his wife Emma is an informal story editor.[8]

Locations

Highclere Castle in Hampshire is used for exterior shots of Downton Abbey and most of the interior filming.[9][10][11][12] The kitchen, servants' quarters and working areas, and some of the "upstairs" bedrooms were constructed and filmed at Ealing Studios.[13]

Highclere Castle, used for interior and exterior filming of Downton Abbey

The village of Bampton in Oxfordshire is used to film outdoor scenes. Notable locations include St Mary's Church and the library, which served as the entrance to the cottage hospital.[14] The old rectory in Bampton is used for the exterior shots of Isobel Crawley's house, with the interior scenes being filmed at Hall Place near Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire.[15]

The Downton Abbey of the title and setting, though fictional, is described as lying in the historical County of Yorkshire. The towns of Easingwold, Kirkby Malzeard, Kirkbymoorside, Malton, Middlesbrough, Ripon, Richmond, and Thirsk, each mentioned by characters in the series, lie in present-day North Yorkshire, as does the city of York, while Leeds—similarly mentioned—lies in West Yorkshire; local Yorkshire media speculated the general location of the fictional Downton Abbey to be somewhere in the triangulated area between the towns of Easingwold, Ripon and Thirsk.[16]

First World War trench warfare scenes in France were filmed in a replica battlefield, specially constructed for period war scenes in a field near the village of Akenham in rural Suffolk.[17][18]

Many historical locations and aristocratic mansions have been used to film various scenes:

The fictional Haxby Park, the estate Sir Richard Carlisle intends to buy in Series 2, is part of Waddesdon Manor in Buckinghamshire.[19] Byfleet Manor in Surrey is the location for the Dower House, home to Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham,[20] while West Wycombe Park in Buckinghamshire is used for the interior scenes of Lady Rosamund (Samantha Bond)'s London residence in Eaton Square.[21] A house in Belgrave Square, London, is used for the exterior shots.[22]

Inveraray Castle in Argyll, Scotland, doubled as "Duneagle Castle" in the 2012 Christmas special.[23]

Greys Court in Oxfordshire was used as the family's secondary property, into which they proposed moving and calling 'Downton Place' due to financial difficulties in the third series. Also in the third series, Bates' prison scenes were filmed at Lincoln Castle in Lincolnshire.

Horsted Keynes railway station in West Sussex is used as Downton station.[24] The station is part of the heritage Bluebell Railway. St Pancras station in London doubled for King's Cross station in episode one of series 4, in the scene where Lady Edith Crawley meets her lover Michael Gregson.[25]

Parts of series 4 were filmed at The Historic Dockyard Chatham – The Tarred Yarn Store was used in episode one as a workhouse where Mrs Hughes (Phyllis Logan) visits Mr Grigg (Nicky Henson) and in episode two, streets at The Historic Dockyard Chatham were used for the scenes where Lady Rose MacClare (Lily James) is at the market with James Kent (Ed Speleers) watching her.[26]

Other filming locations for series 4 include the Criterion Restaurant, and the ballroom of The Savile Club in Mayfair, London.[27]

Scenes for the 2013 Christmas special were filmed at Royal Holloway, University of London, West Wittering beach in West Sussex and Berkshire's Basildon Park. Lancaster House in London stood in for Buckingham Palace.[28][29]

Opening theme

The opening theme to Downton Abbey, titled "Did I Make the Most of Loving You?",[30] was composed by John Lunn.[31] A suite version was released on the soundtrack for the show in 19 September 2011 in the UK and later in the US on 13 December 2011. The soundtrack also included the song performed by singer Mary-Jess Leaverland,[32] with lyrics written by Don Black.[33] According to Lunn, the inspiration for the theme to Downton Abbey came from James Brown.


Main Characters Hugh Bonneville Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham Main Jessica Brown Findlay Lady Sybil Branson (née Crawley) Main
Laura Carmichael Lady Edith Crawley Main Jim Carter Charles "Charlie" Carson Main Raquel Cassidy Phyllis Baxter
Recurring Main Brendan Coyle John Bates Main Tom Cullen Anthony Foyle, Lord Gillingham
Recurring Main Michelle Dockery Lady Mary Crawley Main Kevin Doyle Joseph Molesley Recurring Main Siobhan Finneran Sarah O'Brien Main
Joanne Froggatt Anna Bates (née Smith) Main Thomas Howes William Mason Main
Lily James Lady Rose MacClare
Recurring Main Rob James-Collier Thomas Barrow Main Allen Leech Tom Branson Recurring Main Rose Leslie Gwen Dawson Main
Phyllis Logan Elsie Hughes Main Elizabeth McGovern Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham Main Sophie McShera Daisy Robinson Main Matt Milne Alfred Nugent
Main
Lesley Nicol Beryl Patmore Main Amy Nuttall Ethel Parks
Main
Julian Ovenden Charles Blake
Recurring Main David Robb Dr Richard Clarkson Recurring Main Maggie Smith Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham Main Ed Speleers James "Jimmy" Kent
Main Dan Stevens Matthew Crawley Main
Cara Theobold Ivy Stuart
Recurring Main
Penelope Wilton Isobel Crawley Main Recurring Characters Robert Bathurst Sir Anthony Strallan Recurring Guest Recurring
Samantha Bond Lady Rosamund Painswick Guest Recurring Guest Recurring Zoe Boyle Lavinia Swire
Recurring
MyAnna Buring Edna Braithwaite
Guest Recurring
Clare Calbraith Jane Moorsum
Recurring
Gary Carr Jack Ross
Recurring
Michael Cochrane Reverend Albert Travis
Recurring
Paul Copley Mr Mason
Recurring Guest Jonathan Coy George Murray Guest Recurring
Maria Doyle Kennedy Vera Bates
Recurring
Charles Edwards Michael Gregson
Recurring
Peter Egan Hugh "Shrimpie" MacClare, Marquess of Flintshire
Guest
Recurring Bernard Gallagher Bill Molesley Guest
Guest
Iain Glen Sir Richard Carlisle
Recurring
Richard E. Grant Simon Bricker
Recurring Nigel Harman Alex Green
Recurring
Daisy Lewis Sarah Bunting
Recurring Christine Lohr May Bird Guest Recurring
Christine Mackie Daphne Bryant
Recurring
Shirley MacLaine Martha Levinson
Recurring Guest
Kevin McNally Horace Bryant
Recurring Guest
Brendan Patricks The Hon Evelyn Napier Recurring
Recurring
Daniel Pirrie Maj Charles Bryant
Recurring
Douglas Reith Lord Merton
Guest Recurring Andrew Scarborough Tim Drewe
Recurring Jeremy Swift Spratt
Recurring

Crawley family

Actor Character Position Appearances Hugh Bonneville Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham Lord Grantham, head of the Crawley family Series 1– Elizabeth McGovern Cora Crawley (née Levinson), Countess of Grantham Lady Grantham, Lord Grantham's American heiress wife Series 1– Michelle Dockery Lady Mary Josephine Crawley (née Crawley) Eldest daughter of Lord and Lady Grantham; widow of Matthew Crawley Series 1– Laura Carmichael Lady Edith Crawley Middle daughter of Lord and Lady Grantham Series 1– Jessica Brown Findlay Lady Sybil Cora Branson (née Crawley) † Youngest daughter of Lord and Lady Grantham; late wife of Tom Branson Series 1–3 Maggie Smith Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham Lord Grantham's mother Series 1– Allen Leech Tom Branson Chauffeur of the family (series 1–2), agent of the estate (series 3–5); widower of Lady Sybil Branson Series 1– Dan Stevens Matthew Reginald Crawley † Heir presumptive (third cousin once removed) of Lord Grantham; former lawyer, latterly co-owner of the estate; late husband of Lady Mary Crawley Series 1–Christmas Special 2012 Penelope Wilton Isobel Crawley Matthew's mother; widow and former nurse Series 1– Lily James Lady Rose Aldridge (née MacClare) Cousin and ward of the Granthams; daughter of The Marquess and Marchioness of Flintshire and wife of Atticus Aldridge Series 3– Samantha Bond Lady Rosamund Painswick (née Crawley) Lord Grantham's sister Series 1– Ava Mann (Series 4)
Fifi Hart (Series 5) Miss Sybil "Sybbie" Branson Daughter of Lady Sybil and Tom Branson Series 3– Cole & Logan Weston (Series 4)
Oliver and Zac Barker (Series 5) Master George Crawley Son of Matthew and Lady Mary Crawley, heir-presumptive to the Earldom of Grantham and the Downton estate Christmas Special 2012– Peter Egan Hugh "Shrimpie" MacClare, Marquess of Flintshire Lord Flintshire, Rose's father and ex-husband of Susan MacClare Christmas Special 2012, Series 5- Phoebe Nicholls Susan MacClare, Marchioness of Flintshire Lady Flintshire, Rose's mother and the dowager countess' niece also ex-wife of Hugh "Shrimpie" MacClare Christmas Special 2012, Series 5- Shirley MacLaine Martha Levinson Mother of Lady Grantham, American Series 3, Christmas Special 2013 Paul Giamatti Harold Levinson Lady Grantham's brother Christmas Special 2013[34]

Staff

Actor Character Position Appearances Jim Carter Charles "Charlie" Carson Butler Series 1– Phyllis Logan Elsie Hughes Housekeeper Series 1– Brendan Coyle John Bates Lord Grantham's valet (and his former batman during the Second Boer War); husband of Anna Bates, widower of Vera Bates Series 1– Siobhan Finneran Sarah O'Brien Lady Grantham's lady's maid Series 1–Christmas Special 2012 Rob James-Collier Thomas Barrow First Footman, later Lord Grantham's valet, then Deputy-Butler Series 1– Joanne Froggatt Anna May Bates (née Smith) Head housemaid, later Lady Mary's lady's maid; wife to John Bates Series 1– Lesley Nicol Beryl Patmore Cook Series 1– Sophie McShera Daisy Mason (née Robinson) Kitchen maid, later Assistant Cook; widow of William Mason Series 1– Thomas Howes William Mason † Second Footman; briefly married to Daisy Series 1–2 Rose Leslie Gwen Dawson Housemaid Series 1 Kevin Doyle Joseph Molesley Matthew's butler and valet, later a footman at Downton Abbey Series 1– Amy Nuttall Ethel Parks Housemaid, later Mrs Crawley's Housekeeper and Cook Series 2–3 Clare Calbraith Jane Moorsum Housemaid Series 2 Matt Milne Alfred Nugent Second Footman, O'Brien's nephew Series 3–4 Ed Speleers James "Jimmy" Kent First Footman Series 3–5 Cara Theobold Ivy Stuart Kitchen maid Series 3–Christmas Special 2013 MyAnna Buring Edna Braithwaite Former maid, then briefly Lady Grantham's lady's maid Christmas Special 2012–Series 4 Raquel Cassidy Phyllis Baxter Lady Grantham's lady's maid Series 4– Jeremy SwiftSprattThe Dowager Countess's butlerSeries 4-

Crawley family friends and acquaintances

Actor Character Position Appearances David Robb Dr Richard Clarkson Family doctor Series 1–5 Charles Edwards Michael Gregson Magazine editor, lover of Lady Edith and father of her daughter Series 3-4 Jonathan Coy George Murray Lord Grantham's lawyer Series 1, Christmas Special 2011–Series 3 Bernard Gallagher William "Bill" Molesley Joseph Molesley's father Series 1, Series 3-4 Brendan Patricks The Hon Evelyn Napier Suitor of Lady Mary Series 1, Series 4 Michael Cochrane Reverend Albert Travis Vicar of Downton village Series 2–3 Douglas Reith Richard Grey, Lord Merton Mary's godfather, love interest of Isobel Series 3-5 Tom Cullen Anthony Foyle, Lord Gillingham Crawley family friend and Mary's suitor Series 4–5 Julian Ovenden Charles Blake Evelyn Napier's boss, suitor of Mary Series 4–5 Andrew Scarborough Timothy "Tim" Drewe Tenant farmer on the Grantham estate, foster-father of Edith's daughter Series 4–5 Daisy Lewis Sarah Bunting Schoolteacher, and friend of Tom's Series 4–5 Matt BarberAtticus AldridgeSuitor of Lady Rose, later her husbandSeries 5

Recurring and guest cast

Actor Character Position Appearances Fergus O'Donnell John Drake Farmer on the Grantham estate Series 1–2 Christine Lohr May Bird Mrs Crawley's cook Series 1–3 Lionel Guyett Mr Taylor Chauffeur Series 1 Andrew Westfield Mr Lynch Groom Series 1 Cathy Sara Mrs Drake Wife of John Drake Series 1–2 Theo James Kemal Pamuk † Ottoman (Turkish) Embassy attaché Series 1 Charlie Cox Philip, The Duke of Crowborough Suitor of Lady Mary; lover of Thomas Barrow Series 1 Nicky Henson Charles "Charlie" Grigg Former colleague of Carson Series 1, Series 4 Bill Fellows Joe Burns Mrs Hughes's former suitor Series 1 Robert Bathurst Sir Anthony Strallan Family friend and suitor of Lady Edith Series 1, Christmas Special 2011–Series 3 Zoe Boyle Lavinia Catherine Swire † Fiancée of Matthew Series 2 Maria Doyle Kennedy Vera Bates † Estranged wife of Mr Bates Series 2 Iain Glen Sir Richard Carlisle Newspaper proprietor and suitor of Lady Mary Series 2–Christmas Special 2011 Cal MacAninch Henry Lang Lord Grantham's valet Series 2 Lachlan Nieboer Lt Edward Courtenay † Wounded officer Series 2 Daniel Pirrie Maj Charles Bryant † Wounded officer; father of Ethel's child Series 2 Trevor White Maj Patrick Gordon Wounded officer who claims to be Patrick Crawley, who was believed dead and would be heir presumptive if not Series 2 Paul Copley Mr Mason William Mason's father Series 2– Kevin McNally Horace Bryant Maj Bryant's father Series 2–3 Christine Mackie Daphne Bryant Maj Bryant's mother Series 2–3 Nigel Havers Lord Hepworth Suitor of Lady Rosamund Christmas Special 2011 Sharon Small Marigold Shore Lady Rosamund's maid Christmas Special 2011 Charlie Anson Laurence "Larry" Grey Lord Merton's eldest son Series 3, Series 5 Tim Pigott-Smith Sir Philip Tapsell London obstetrician and gynaecologist Series 3 Ruairi Conaghan Kieran Branson Tom's brother Series 3 Lucille Sharp Ms Reed Mrs Levinson's maid Series 3 Michael Culkin Cosmo Gordon Lang Archbishop of York Series 3 John Henshaw Jos Tufton Grocer and Mrs Patmore's suitor Christmas Special 2012 Harriet Walter Lady Shackleton Friend of Violet Series 4–5 Gary Carr Jack Ross African American jazz singer and musician Series 4 Kiri Te Kanawa Nellie Melba Opera singer Series 4 Christina Carty Virginia Woolf Writer Series 4 Nigel Harman Alex Green † Lord Gillingham's valet Series 4 Andrew Alexander Sir John Bullock Crawley family acquaintance Series 4 Guy Williams George V King of the United Kingdom, Emperor of India Christmas Special 2013 Oliver Dimsdale Prince of Wales Heir to the British throne Christmas Special 2013 Janet Montgomery Freda Dudley Ward Mistress of the Prince of Wales Christmas Special 2013 James Fox William "Billy" Allsopp Lord Aysgarth Christmas Special 2013 Poppy Drayton Madeleine Allsopp Lady, Lord Aysgarth's daughter Christmas Special 2013 Richard E. Grant Simon Bricker Art historian and Crawley family guest Series 5 Anna Chancellor Dowager Lady Anstruther James Kent's former employer Series 5 Rade Šerbedžija Prince Igor Kuragin Russian refugee Series 5 Emma Lowndes Margie Drewe Tim Drewe's wife Series 5 Sue Johnston Gladys Denker Lady's Maid to Dowager Countess of Grantham Series 5 [35] James Faulkner Lord Sinderby Atticus Aldridge's father Series 5 Penny Downie Lady Sinderby Lord Sinderby's wife, Atticus Aldridge's mother Series 5 Ed Cooper Clarke Timothy "Tim" Grey Lord Merton's second son Series 5