I never got into the hype of Downton Abbey when it first came out, I think I was a bit too young to really understand the excitement about it, but having fallen in love with The Crown in recent years, once I saw it come to Netflix it was definitely a show that I had to watch.

Season one is obviously the beginning of Downton Abbey where we are thrust into this world just as the Titanic sinks, and finding out what happens to the heir of the abbey, what happens to the eldest daughter’s engagement, and all the craziness that comes with people dying on the Titanic. It was a fantastic look at an event that I didn’t realise could ripple into so many people’s lives in a way that wasn’t just grief over losing their loved ones.

I feel this is a time period that can sometimes get ignored or missed. Of course within season two we get into the Great War but in season one it’s before that. We have the differences between the upper-class and the lower class, maids and servants and their jobs vs the women of the family being made to have marriages that will mean they keep their status, and not really give them much more excitement in life other than to have children.

I really enjoyed the juxtaposition between the downstairs and the upstairs and how we got a really good sense of both areas. We learnt about the people below and how these jobs mean everything to them and if they don’t have that they have nothing, whereas the people in the upper-class don’t have to work, they don’t have to do anything really bar be rich and enjoy themselves because they have this plentiful amount of money that is never going to run out.

I understand now watching the first season that Downton is such a classic. It’s a show that takes you to a time period that is often overlooked by historical dramas and really lets you connect to the characters in a different way. I feel so often we look at the past with rose tinted glasses of how wonderful it would be to go back, then when you actually see characters go through that time you soon realise that we are very privileged and we would miss a lot if we did go back in time.

I definitely feel this is a show that anyone can get into. It’s really fascinating, of course if you like period dramas that’s going to help you enjoy it more, but I am not someone who is a huge period drama fan and I still loved it. The amount of time and care and attention that is bought to each character really means you resonate and connect with them, and despite them coming from a very privileged background you really do sympathise with the characters and what they’re going through, because at this time in the world there is so much change that is about to happen that it’s interesting to see what they saw as problems back then that now would be the most trivial things.

What do you think of Downton Abbey season one?

Until next time.

Published by shonaharding

Media graduate with a passion for reviewing film and TV. View all posts by shonaharding