Downton Abbey ITV1 22nd September 9pm

[Captain Shaw]

The fires would be done in the morning then they would be redone if need be while the family was in another room it the dinning room.
Don't forget they have a morning room a drawing room and a library to sit in.
Also I think they might have brass buckets with coal in near the fireplaces if they needed topping up.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

Downton season four comes to an end on Masterpiece tonight.

I'm hearing that the fifth season is likely to be the last. Dame Maggie Smith, Elizabeth McGovern, and Jim Carter have all made noises about leaving after (or perhaps even during) the fifth season.

 

[Tora Ziyal]

I'm okay with the fifth season being the last. All good things, etc. But I sure hope all the actors for the major characters stick it out 'til the end!

 

[selina]

Here it says that season 6 could be their last one.

According to this article Fellowes states that

ITV commission each series on a year-by-year basis.

So they don't know yet if there will be another season or not. However, he goes on about a new show he is going to write for NBC and that he doesn't want to jiggle with two shows at the same time. That's why season six could be the last one.

I believe that having six seasons instead of just five won't hurt the quality of the show.

 

[cultcross]

At some point the format is going to run its course anyway, once they get to/past the second world war, I think they will struggle to keep the basic premise alive. Unless we have a season where the National Trust buy it up and open a small train ride.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

"The London Season" (the 2013 Christmas special that aired last night on PBS) could have been better.

The time jump to cover Edith's pregnancy didn't work. Every character acted as though a week had passed since the previous episode, especially the Isobel/Merton and Tom/Sarah pairings, rather than the stated nine months.

The rest was okay. I had trouble mustering interest in the Rose and the royal scandal storyline. Harold was an interesting addition, but again, I had trouble mustering great interest because I don't see him as a recurring character. Mary's gaggle of suitors was amusing, but I wanted more closure there. Then, of course, there's the question as to whether or not Bates is a murderous psychopath.

There weren't a lot of highs in season four. Rather, it felt like a lot of set-up, and I hope for Downton's sake that set-up pays off.

 

[J.T.B.]

I think I am done with that show. The interesting downstairs characters and what social commentary there was early-on have been slighted in favor of romances. The situations become and more preposterous: Lord Grantham is broke (earlier season), and then what do you know, Matthew becomes rich! Mary's inheritance is in jeopardy, and what do you know, a legal will falls out of a book and she's OK! Edith's man not only disappeared, it was the Nazis done it! How many times did Anna tell someone a secret that they must not tell anyone else? And Bates went from honorable but enigmatic disabled veteran to crime-fighting master criminal. And the season finale revolves around a break-in caper?!

I still like the performers and some of the characters, but the writing has become a self-parody that no longer serves them well.