Highclere Castle, the setting for the Downton Abbey television series and new film.
It’s been a long wait. Downton Abbey, the wildly popular television series masterminded by Julian Fellowes, aired its last episode in the US in 2016, and fans of the show have mourned its absence ever since. But now Downtonians can raise a glass or kick back a Pimm’s and rejoice—the upstairs-downstairs dramas of the Crawley family and staff are coming to the big screen, with Dame Maggie Smith (the peerless peer Lady Violet), Hugh Bonneville (Lord Grantham), Michele Dockery (Lady Mary), Jim Carter (Mr. Carson) and many members of of the original cast reprising their now famous characters. The movie opens in the US on September 20 (with a September 13 international release).
To celebrate the debut of Downton Abbey, Highclere Castle is planning a "Costumes & Cocktails" ... [+]
If you want to celebrate the film debut in Downton style, there’s no place better to do it than at the real Downton Abbey, best known as Highclere Castle, the extraordinary 5000-acre estate in Hampshire that served as the primary setting for all six seasons of the series and the movie. The Count and Countess of Carnarvon, who live at Highclere, the longtime seat of the Earls of Carnarvon, are planning a weekend of events on Saturday, September 7, and Sunday, September 8, to commemorate the movie's release with a special castle tour called “Costumes & Cocktails.”
The coronation robe of Lady Almina, the 5th Coutness of Carnarvon, will be on display.
Each day’s itinerary includes visits to Highclere’s magnificent rooms where many settings will be well known to viewers of the show— imposing spaces like the saloon, dining room and double library, and a number of the grandly cozy bedrooms. There will also be a costume exhibit with rarely seen vintage items. As the movie deals with a visit of King George V and Queen Mary to Downton, it’s very timely that one of the vintage pieces on display will be the newly restored ceremonial robe that Lady Almina, the 5th Countess of Carnarvon, wore to the coronations of Edward VII and George V. (To learn about the particulars of these historic items, Lady Carnarvon recently wrote about the family’s collection of coronation robes on the Highclere site.) And to remember life “downstairs” at Downton, a footman’s livery from more than a century ago will also be on view.
An aerial photograph of Highclere Castle, located in Hampshire on a 5000-acre estate.
Since the film takes place in the late 1920s, the weekend will have a Jazz Age ambiance, and visitors are encouraged to dress in period costume. You can even have a vintage “do” at a pop-up hair salon on site. Alex Mendham’s orchestra, which showcases music from the ‘20s and ‘30s, will play hits from that era in a special dance tent, and the The Gatsby Girls, London-based specialists in vintage entertainment, can help you brush up on your Charleston dancing skills. Car aficionados will want to check out the display of vintage autos to be held on the property. And everyone can enjoy a glass of Pimm’s served in one of the marquees set up for the event.
Lady Carnarvon's new book will look at how Highclere Castle celebrates the holidays.
If you can’t make it to Highclere on the 7th or 8th, you can see the castle on later dates and enjoy the setting in all its autumnal and holiday beauty. On October 1, Lady Carnarvon hosts a special talk and castle visit, and during September and October there are tours that focus on how the castle functions as a private home and the ways it was used as a film and television set.
Christmas at Highclere is an an especially sumptuous visual treat, and in November and December visits take on a holiday theme. Tours will explain how a house the size of Highclere gets decked out for Christmas, and holiday teas are scheduled, where you can see the decorations and magnificent tree in the saloon. On December 7, Lord and Lady Carnarvon host a glamorous five-course Christmas dinner (dress: black and white tie and long dresses), held in the dining room, which is lined with ancestral portraits and the famous van Dyck painting of Charles I. While you're sure to be wowed by Highclere’s daytime setting, check out the castle’s other-worldly beauty when it is floodlit at night: two evening tours with caroling (and Champagne!) are planned. To get a real insider look at the holiday season at Highclere, Lady Carnarvon will be speaking about her new book, Christmas at Highclere: Recipes & Traditions from The Real Downton Abbey, on December 7 and 13. In this stylish tome, the countess shares details of how the holidays play out at this grand estate from Advent through New Year’s, and includes recipes for the dishes served at the castle throughout the Christmas period.
