Why Fellowes wants to swap Downton for downtown N.Y.

HIS fortunes have been linked to English country houses since the success of Downton Abbey and Gosford Park, but Julian Fellowes is considering moving abroad.

‘I love New York,’ he declares during a visit to the U.S.

‘I’m tempted to get a tiny flat and live in New York.’

Lord Fellowes adds: ‘ Some cities you must know someone to survive. Here not.

‘There are museums, theatres, libraries to experience. I visit the Empire State building’s observation deck at 11 pm, right before the lights get shut off, just to view the city. It’s magical.

‘Forget traffic. In crowded London you sit in taxis for ever to get nowhere. At least here you can move.’

He and his wife, Emma, a former lady-in-waiting to Princess Michael of Kent, already have a Chelsea townhouse and a Dorset mansion, plus a beach hut in Devon.