<p>Ok, just read this and don’t want to know for sure. I’ll leave the matter unresolved in my mind.</p>
<p>Though the spoiler sounded pretty genuine, PBS seemed to downplay the matter. Asked to comment on Ferguson’s overenthusiasm, Rebecca Eaton, executive producer of Masterpiece on PBS, issued the following statement to EW:** ”We love that Craig is such a big fan of Downton Abbey and he did that FAKE spoiler really, really well. We’re considering writing him into series 3 as an Under-Footman.” **</p>
<p>North and South is on its way to me (at first I thought people were talking about the Civil War series with Patrick Swayze and Leslie Ann Down lol)…watched the Buccaneers some years ago, very good.</p>
<p>GCmom, next time you’re sick, check out The Way We Live Now, a BBC/PBS series based on Anthony Trollope’s novels. A very good recent production, quite funny and moving. You can stream it off Netflix.</p>
<p>It’s in my instant queue, Katliamom! Fortunately, I wasn’t terribly sick, just a bad cold, so I will sadly return to work tomorrow. I would love another full day of these shows!</p>
<p>I love Downton Abbey. Watched 1 st season on Netflix. My co worker turned me onto Forsyte Saga on Netflix. Another English ministries of the Victorian/ Edwardian era. A bit spicier than DA.</p>
<p>If you can, try to see the original Forsyte Saga, from the '70s. It had superb Shakespearean actors like Eric Porter and Kenneth More. The remake was good, but the original is a masterpiece.</p>
<p>That was a great series. I remember watching it with my Mom, back in the days , no DVR, had to be home week after week. I’d like to watch that again…wonder if it’s still available.</p>
<p>For those who have not seen it and are interested in the period, I highly recommend the miniseries ‘Testament of Youth,’ based on the autobiography of the same name by Vera Brittain. I saw it in England when it was originally broadcast, and have seen it since. I don’t know about its availability now.</p>
<p>On the literary front, in addition to such classics as Seigfried Sassoon’s autobiographical works, I cannot recommend the novels by Pat Barker beginning with “Regeneration” too highly.</p>
<p>After decades of watching PBS I’m generally pretty good at understanding most British accents, but I’ve noticed I often have trouble with some of the characters on Downton Abbey. The housemaid Anna gives me the most trouble. Seems like about a quarter of the time she says something I find myself thinking “What? What did she just say?”</p>
<p>Maybe it’s the way the actress speaks. Maybe it’s Anna’s working class accent. Maybe it’s the way the production sound engineers mix music over the dialog. Maybe my middle-aged ears are failing me. Maybe it’s all these things. Anyone else have this trouble?</p>
<p>^^^ Yes. I often have trouble with the “non-posh” English accents. I often need my husband to translate, somewhat to my chagrin and his amusement…</p>
<p>None of the accents on Downton are taxing; they’re actually watered down versions of the originals. I have never had any difficulty understanding English accents from around the globe, so why some Americans do is beyond me.</p>
<p>The woman who plays Anna (Joanne Froggatt) said an interview somewhere that she changed her accent slightly because of the differences of where she is from and where her character is from. She said it a long interview with the rest of the cast I think when someone asked whether they had an issue of Americans being unable to understand the actors well.</p>
<p>I often have difficulty understanding British actors as well. I’ve noticed this on the other British shows that I watch and love (such as MI-5). If those people would just face the camera directly and speak slowly and distinctly I’m sure I could figure it out! As they won’t, I think I’ll blame the sound engineers.</p>
<p>Thanks for the NY Times article, mdemvizi. I’ve made a list of books to request at my local library! </p>
<p>I am enjoying DA! I think Lavinia looks insipid, I love to hate Thomas, Cora is an unsufferable busybody, and Lord Grantham should have specified what areas of the house were open to convalescents when he made the offer.</p>
<p>I completely disagree about Cora. I find her to be one of the most delightful characters, although I’d be somewhat calculating as well if my home were being taken over under those circumstances. I’d want to make sure that Isobel wasn’t going to be able to boss me around my own house. She was so low maintenance in season 1 that I have noticed a change in season 2 as she is being manipulated by O’Brien. Just my opinion…</p>
<p>I’m with you about Isobel’s behavior this season. I read that they will start shooting Season 3 soon and if the war is over, I wonder if they will figure out how to tone her down a notch or two!</p>