Damn! Was it hot on PBS last night? Or was it the return of Downton Abbey?
Okay, maybe it was both.
Following far too long of a hiatus, this beloved British hit finally aired on PBS Sunday evening, with Downton Abbey Season 5 Episode 1 opening the door to numerous secrets that could change the lives of characters forever.
Let’s begin with Isobel Crawley, who turned to the Dowager Countess for some advice in the love department after not exactly feeling anything for Dickie Morton.
The Dowager responded by turning Dickie’s attention to Lady Shackleton during one of her classic luncheons.
Lady Mary, meanwhile, received a surprise visit from Tony Gillingham, who wants to follow the advice of Beyonce and put a ring on it.
But Mary responds to his proposal with blunt honesty: “Tony, I do love you in my own cold and unfeeling way… [but] I intend to be as happy with my second husband as I was with my first." (RIP, Matthew, by the way.)
Then there was Lady Anstruther, who invited herself to the Crawleys’ wedding anniversary and slipped Jimmy a naughty note during dinner. She then ravaged him as the house burned down.
Elsewhere, this same party was sort of ruined by Miss Bunting expressing her anti-war sentiments, while Lady Edith cried herself to sleep while thinking about Marigold.
Yes, Tim is open to working out a better visiting deal, but it’s hard to see that going too smoothly, considering Margie is already suspicious of her.
How long until Edith’s secret is discovered?
Finally, we come to Cora’s latest lady’s maid, Phyllis Baxter. We learned that she stole jewelry from her last employer and attempted to pass it off as a burglary. But this information wasn’t enough for Cora to let her go, not after the way Thomas tries to use her past to blackmail her.
She has a lot to think about and you can watch Downton Abbey online to better understand her mindset.
Considering her previous lady’s maid forced Cora into having a miscarriage, the threat of a couple stolen necklaces probably isn’t that daunting for her, though, you know?