GLAMOUR GIRLS
The new Downton Abbey movie has proved to be one of the most hotly-anticipated releases of the year – and as we wonder what will happen to our favourite characters, MiNDFOOD goes behind the scenes for exclusive interviews with the cast & crew.
Cast and crew watch with bated breath as Michelle Dockery steps gracefully out of a motor carriage, clad in a flapper ensemble that is perfectly redolent of today’s year – 1927 – and glides into the entrance hall of Highclere Castle, known best the world over as Downton Abbey. It has been four years since the season finale of the award-winning British TV period drama that became a worldwide phenomenon, yet Lady Mary Crawley – the role Dockery seems born to play – takes to the grand staircase as though no time has passed at all.
Reprising her role as the stoic eldest daughter of Yorkshire’s treasured aristocratic family – whose wit, looks and ahead-of-its-time feminism caused both admiration and consternation – was like returning home, she says.
“Coming back was quite emotional, actually,” Dockery smiles, nodding furiously with a furrowed brow – as if to inadvertently convey her multitude of emotions all at once.
“The first day on set, walking back into the house after four years, I realised how much I missed it and it felt quite nostalgic. I’ve obviously got such a fondness for Mary. She’s been a huge part of my life. I missed playing her; and enjoyed her strength, her wit and humour, especially having played American roles since the Downton finale [Dockery has notably starred in the TV drama Good Behavior and the miniseries Godless], which only made me miss her more.
“But I have to say, Mary will always stay with me. Some characters are so poignant in your career that you take them with you.”
Creator/writer Julian Fellowes also struggled to contain his emotions on returning to the scene of what may be called his greatest professional success.
“It was quite surreal,” he notes, of the first day back on set. “You think a chunk of your life is over, you all move on, and suddenly there you are again, standing in the halls at Highclere with someone adjusting Mary’s hair, and everyone in costume.”
INTO MARY’S SHOES
But this afternoon, Dockery is 5,500km from the idyllic English countryside, where Highclere Castle – the real ‘Downton Abbey’ – proudly stands. Sitting in a director’s chair at a studio in Salem – an hour’s drive out of Boston, USA – she is taking a break from the contemporary thriller she’s filming, Defending Jacob. In a formfitting shirt and jeans, her appearance could not be more at odds with Lady Mary’s early 20th century finery. Even more jarring, her natural accent is a far cry from her alter-ego’s clipped upper crust tones – Dockery is, after all, a loud and “proud Essex girl”.
She admits finding her famed character again involved a little bit of research. “Coming back to Downton, I had to remind myself of what Mary sounded like, so I re-watched the show to get back into it. It was good to see some of the last season just to feel the role again.” She smiles. “And just like that, I slipped back into Mary’s shoes so quickly.”
No other hiccups? “Well, yeah. Julian [Fellowes] is always pulling us up on pronunciations.” She laughs. “It’s always really funny when Julian gives you a little pronunciation note – it makes you feel quite special.
“Also, the body language is very important. It’s a lot about keeping your posture, and Mary has a stillness about her I admire so much. And our historical advisor had to remind me not to put my hands in my pockets because that’s a very modern thing.”
For those who are unfamiliar with the wider universe of Downton Abbey, this new standalone film can be enjoyed without having watched the TV series (which ran from 2010 to 2015). But for anyone who was glued to the show once a week (back in the days before binge-watching was really an option), Dockery explains: “The film is an extension of the series, but it’s turned up a notch. We’re coming up to 1927 so it moves quite smoothly from the series into the film. I think it was really important for it not to change and for us not to try and do anything just for the sake of it being a film. We’re about to embark on the Depression – and the general strike is looming – but the story revolves around the people,” she says. “What people love about the show are those characters. So the main theme is the question, ‘What is the future of Downton Abbey?’”
There’s an added punch to the storyline – an impending visit from the king and queen of the United Kingdom, no less – which renders the household (upstairs and downstairs) all aflutter. Producer Gareth Neame offers, “It is the biggest day to go down in Downton history. And let’s just say, it doesn’t go according to plan.”
“In some ways the royal visit is a bit like The Crown meets Downton,” notes Dockery. “We have to impress the royals – which is a slight reversal for the Crawleys, and I think that’s what people will love about it.”
The Crawley family members were, after all, the ultimate ‘one-percenters’ of their day, representing the English upper class system at its best – and its worst. Downton Abbey, which showcased the whole lot of it so spectacularly, ran for six exquisitely costumed seasons, spanning 1912 to
“It is the biggest day to go down in Downton history. And let’s just say, it doesn’t go according to plan.”
GARETH NEAME, PRODUCER