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Season 4 Characters

Start your engines, Season 4 of Downton Abbey is on. What do we know about new and old characters? Sadly, O’Brien and her bangs left the building. O’Brien schemed herself right off the show. Shirley Maclaine is back to spar with Countess Violet. Branson brings on a nanny. And our favourite flapper cousin Rose is full time at Downton.

And fear not, Julian Fellowes has written some hunks into the new Season of Downton…

Julian Ovenden appears on Downton Abbey Season 4 as aristocrat Charles Blake. Will he make a play for single mom Lady Mary? Ovenden is also a singer, but no word on whether he'll be crooning for Lady Mary.

Nigel Harman plays a visiting valet called "Green". Is this 'the one' for Thomas? Or will he give Bates a run for Anna's attention? Harman is best known for appearing on Eastenders.

Tom Cullen plays Lord Gillingham, a family friend of the Crawleys. He appears as a suitor for Lady Mary. She likes them tall, dark and handsome, like Pamuk. . He makes his debut at a party thrown by the Crawley family to help lift Lady Mary's spirit.

Jack Ross is Downton Abbey’s first black character. He is good looking, charming and a spirited Jazz singer to boot.

The Jazz singer we've all been waiting for...

Lily James, Cousin Rose, joins the rest of the cast for a regular role on Downton Abbey Season 4 as she moves to Downton Abbey.

Dame Harriet Walter will appear as Lady Shackleton, a friend of the Dowager Countess. Apparently, her character is a force to be reckoned with who can hold her own against the sassy Countess Violet

New Zealander Dame Kiri te Kanawa visits Downton to perform as an opera singer.

So Yes. Shirley Maclaine is back on Season 4 playing Martha Levinson, sharp as a tack and jazzy

Downton Abbey costs an average of one million pounds per episode to produce.

As of 2013, Downton Abbey is the highest rated PBS "Masterpiece" drama series of all time, seen by an estimated 120 million viewers in 200 countries and regions.

Gillian Anderson reportedly turned down the part of Lady Cora Grantham.

The real estate that "plays" Downton Abbey, Highclere Castle, has been the home of the Carnarvon family since 1679. In 1922, George Herbert, the 5th Earl of Carnarvon, co-discovered the Tomb of the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun. On the show, the names of the Earl of Grantham's beloved dogs, Isis and Pharaoh, are nods to the real castle's connection to Egyptian history.

According to Julian Fellowes, the parts played by Hugh Bonneville, Brendan Coyle and Maggie Smith were written for the actors.

It was reported that Steven Waddington auditioned for the part of Bates.

When Downton Abbey first aired, Julian Fellowes (creator and producer) was annoyed at the media for pointing out anachronisms like TV aerials and the use of the word 'boyfriend'. (The word 'boyfriend appeared in print in 1889, long before the period setting of Downton). Fellowes said "they think to show how smart they are by picking holes in the program to promote their own poshness and to show that their knowledge is greater than your knowledge". In a later article coinciding with the start of the second season, Fellowes apologised and commented "I behaved rather badly by getting the hump."

Season 4 Characters

Downton Abbey Trivia

Hunks of Downton Abbey

Extras

Shirley Maclaine Interview