Favourite Downton Abbey Character(S)?

[love2travel]

I admit it. I am addicted to Downton Abbey. My favourite characters include so many but if I had to choose I would say Mr. Bates and Anna. I love Mrs. Crawley, too. Maggie Smith is a brilliant actress.

Any other hopeless addicts out there with any favourites?

[missy'smom]

I'm a big public television fan

[IrishHeart]

Hopelessly addicted ---and if Anna and Bates do not get together, I will fling something at the TV screen.

Ditto for Mary and Matthew. I think she has been humbled enough to be more worthy of him.

How poignant for Mrs. Hughes to give up a marriage offer to remain loyal and run the household. It's amazing how much was involved in managing these estates.

Could you just strangle O'Brien?? (that vicious, conniving b---h) and how about Thomas? What a cad!

Of course, Mrs. Crawley is quite admirable and yet, even the crusty old dowager had her moment when she gave up her award for the roses to that sweet man.

The beauty of such characters lies in their humanity ---even when it seems they are irredeemable.

Sorry, got off on a roll there ----once an English Prof....

[missy'smom]

Sorry, got off on a roll there ----once an English Prof....

Well, I was an English Lit major...

I watched it last year so I remeber some of what happens in the end but I won't spoil it for you

[IrishHeart]

Some of you may be ahead of me in watching it? I guess it played in the UK before here in the States.

I am only on Season 2 episode 1.

[love2travel]

Some of you may be ahead of me in watching it? I guess it played in the UK before here in the States.

I am only on Season 2 episode 1.

We are on Season 2 and will be watching episode 3 Sunday. Do you have any favourites?

[love2travel]

Hopelessly addicted ---and if Anna and Bates do not get together, I will fling something at the TV screen.

Ditto for Mary and Matthew. I think she has been humbled enough to be more worthy of him.

How poignant for Mrs. Hughes to give up a marriage offer to remain loyal and run the household. It's amazing how much was involved in managing these estates.

Could you just strangle O'Brien?? (that vicious, conniving b---h) and how about Thomas? What a cad!

Of course, Mrs. Crawley is quite admirable and yet, even the crusty old dowager had her moment when she gave up her award for the roses to that sweet man.

The beauty of such characters lies in their humanity ---even when it seems they are irredeemable.

Sorry, got off on a roll there ----once an English Prof....

Anna and Mr. Bates MUST get married or else. They will have us rowdies to answer to!

You are spot on with the characters. They are so admirably played. Even O'Brien's friend (man, I'm having a foggy moment again as I cannot grasp his name) makes me angry but he is a good actor. It is interesting how these characters elicit such responses!

I have done a lot of reading about the upstairs/downstairs issue and find it utterly fascinating. We've been to many castles but one in Scotland had such interesting servants' quarters. Dark and tiny narrow almost built-in bunks that would have been filled with straw. If they were seen by the masters they could be killed!

[missy'smom]

Anna and Mr. Bates MUST get married or else. They will have us rowdies to answer to!

I have done a lot of reading about the upstairs/downstairs issue and find it utterly fascinating.

I'm such a nerd. When that huge tome came out a few years back on life in a victorian home, if that wasn't the title itself. I checked it out from the library and read it and enjoyed it.

Christopher something or other, the guy on America's Test Kitchen, had a special on recently and had the staff prepare a victorian dinner in a victorian house they took the kitchen and dining room back in time. That was interesting too! Made jello the old way, boiling pigs feet or something like that to extract the gelatin and used their own homemade natural dyes for the colors in the gelatin. Took them a year or so to perfect the recipes and make the show. I remember now, I think it was Fanny Farmer cookbook they used.

I've been looking out for natural gelatin recipes that are attractive for a couple years but will not be making my own gelatin Knox is ok for me.

[love2travel]

I'm such a nerd. When that huge tome came out a few years back on life in a victorian home, if that wasn't the title itself. I checked it out from the library and read it and enjoyed it.

Christopher something or other, the guy on America's Test Kitchen, had a special on recently and had the staff prepare a victorian dinner in a victorian house they took the kitchen and dining room back in time. That was interesting too! Made jello the old way, boiling pigs feet or something like that to extract the gelatin and used their own homemade natural dyes for the colors in the gelatin. Took them a year or so to perfect the recipes and make the show. I remember now, I think it was Fanny Farmer cookbook they used.

I've been looking out for natural gelatin recipes that are attractive for a couple years but will not be making my own gelatin Knox is ok for me.

Count me in as a nerd. I read over 200 books in 2011 and am off to a good start for 2012! Most is non fiction but I do love some of the Victorian-era fiction. The distinction between classes is compelling.

I somehow missed AMT's Victorian dinner! Darn it. I do recipe testing for them so am usually up on these things. Have you seen any of Heston Blumenthal's feasts? Wow. Unreal.

[missy'smom]

Have you seen any of Heston Blumenthal's feasts? Wow. Unreal.

Never heard. Do tell.

[love2travel]

Never heard. Do tell.

He has been one of the top 3 chefs on the planet in recent years. His restaurant, near London, is called "The Fat Duck" and I want to go there desperately. The multi-course molecular gastronomy meals are around $300-$500 each plus wine but I want to do it once in my life. He and Grant Achaz in Chicago and Ferran Adria in Spain (El Bulli) are known to be the top molecular gastronomists. Simply amazing. Mindblowingly so. I have all their books (yes, I did say I was a nerd!) and many dishes have about 20-40 components and the recipes, not doable at home unless you have a science lab, are several pages long. Unreal. Oh, and Noma. That is the current top restaurant on the planet in Denmark. Wait - maybe Sweden? I have that chef's book, too, and it is all detailed photographs with little else. Beautiful but you really have to be a food geek to appreciate it.

Anyway, here is a clip on Heston's Medieval Feast (he's done several feasts on TV):

Open Original Shared Link

medieval-feast-video/

You should google more of his feasts - you just would not believe it. I loved the Victorian one - see if you can find the whole thing. Here is some of it...

Open Original Shared Link

[lpellegr]

I have been drooling over the dresses. Mary had a red number with some red velvet and lace trims that just knocked my socks off in season 1. But I'd still rather be wearing my jeans to watch it than wearing those dresses all day!

[IrishHeart]

I have been drooling over the dresses. Mary had a red number with some red velvet and lace trims that just knocked my socks off in season 1. But I'd still rather be wearing my jeans to watch it than wearing those dresses all day!

or all those layers of undergarments...ugh!

but yes, some of those dresses are gorgeous.