Downton Abbey returns to TV3 as the characters mourn the death of Matthew Crawley.

Wednesday 25th, 17:19pm

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Sharon McHugh
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publicity@tv3.ie

Ciara Byrne
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IMMEDIATE: Monday 23rd September 2013

Downton Abbey returns to TV3 as the characters mourn the death of Matthew Crawley.

Still reeling from series three’s finale, Downton Abbey returns in the wake of Matthew Crawley’s death.

His widow Lady Mary grieves while the series transitions into the Roaring Twenties

Xposé’s Aisling O’Loughlin gets the inside scoop in an interview with Downton’s Michelle Dockery.

Downton Abbey S4 Episode 1 airs Wednesday 25th September at 9pm on TV3.

Xposé airs Monday 23rd September at 6pm on TV3.

Video link to view the full episode is available on request.

As Downton Abbey series four hits our screens, the aftermath of Matthew Crawley’s death is very much the focus. Following on from an explosive Christmas special, Lady Mary Crawley is left a widow and a single mother.

As Mary struggles to come to terms with her loss, Robert and Violet disagree on how to bring her through it. Downstairs, hearts are set to be broken as Jimmy finally takes an interest in Ivy. Carson has an unwelcome reminder of his past in the form of his old theatre pal Charlie but Mrs Hughes sees an opportunity to help grief stricken Isobel. Thomas is up to his old tricks and has the children’s Nanny in his sights.

Speaking to Xposé’s Aisling O’Loughlin, Michelle Dockery, who plays Lady Mary Crawley, reveals that her character will return to being ‘stony-faced’ following the death of her husband Matthew in a horrific car crash. Michelle said that although it was nice to see Lady Mary with a smile, when Dan Stevens decided to leave there was no other way around it.

“Matthew was the heir to Downton Abbey so he couldn’t very well just disappear never to be seen again, so it had to be as brutal as that at the end of series three, unfortunately for everyone. But what it’s done is opened up a whole new avenue and something that we all weren’t expecting and that I’m sure Julian [Fellowes] wasn’t expecting and of course for Mary it’s been a different journey again. I guess for her it’s very much about moving on and recovering from what’s happened to her.”

Michelle also revealed that we can claim her as our own because her father was born in Athlone!

“My dad is from Athlone but we haven’t been back in quite a long time. I’d like to go on a bit of a road trip and maybe explore my roots a bit more.”

As the series moves on, the characters are transitioning into the twenties and this is definitely reflected in the fashion. However Lady Mary does not take to the change as willingly as others. Speaking about the series costume designer Caroline McCall, Michelle has the highest of praise.

“She has such wonderful attention to detail and this year especially she really embraces the twenties and characters like Rose and Edith are very much the bright young things of the twenties and that’s who they represent. Mary does embrace it but she’s a mother now and there’s a sort of maturity about what she wears now and it’s been lovely to see that between series one and series four, she’s kind of grown into a woman.”

Downton Abbey S4 Episode 1 airs Wednesday 25th September at 9pm on TV3.

Xposé airs Monday 23rd September at 6pm on TV3.

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For further information
Ciara Byrne

Press Officer

00353 1 419 3329

00353 87 319 9732

Sharon McHugh
Head of Press & Publicity

00353 1 419 3430
00353 87 922 4143

publicity@tv3.ie
www.tv3.ie

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