[caption id="attachment_70203" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Actor Brendan Coyle, in the role of John Bates, described his Irish and Scottish grandfathers as “strong, stoic gentlemen.” He’s pictured with Joanne Froggatt who plays his true love Anna Smith in “Downton Abbey.” "]
Production is under way on the third season of “Downton Abbey,” the British costume drama that has become an unexpected pop-culture phenomenon with great reviews, high ratings and a loyal following.
Written and produced by “Gosford Park” scribe Julian Fellowes, the series follows the lives of the wealthy Crawley family and those who serve them in their mansion in the early 20th century English countryside. The Golden Globe- and Emmy Award-winning show features an extraordinary British, Irish and American cast headed up by Hugh Bonneville and Elizabeth McGovern. It also includes Brendan Coyle, Maggie Smith, Dan Stevens, Michelle Dockery, Siobhan Finneran, Joanne Froggatt, Jim Carter, Allen Leech, Jessica Brown Findlay and Maria Doyle Kennedy. “Terms of Endearment” and “Steel Magnolias” star Shirley MacLaine will be part of the ensemble next season, as well.
Although fans will have to content themselves with watching DVDs or reruns on PBS until fresh episodes of the show start airing, some stars of the series have been dropping hints about what audiences can expect when the show returns.
Discussing the future of the denizens of “Downton Abbey” in a video clip posted on the show’s Web site, “Notting Hill,” “Blow Dry” and “Iris” star Bonneville said: “That’s the great thing about Julian’s scripts. Each time you open them you have no idea what’s going to be coming up next.
“We know it’s an era, obviously, where we’re in mourning and recovering from the Spanish flu,” explained the British actor, who plays Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham. “The world was completely smashed to bits by Spanish flu. There were far more casualties during that than there were in the First World War. So, as the season finale comes along, we’ve come out the other side of that in to January 1920 and, of course, it’s a whole new decade ahead. What’s going to happen? They don’t know there’s a general strike and a world crash coming around the corner, an economic crash. They didn’t know that was on the horizon, so I think the events of 1920 and 1921, which is what will happen in the third season, will be much more of a focus on the world around the house and the rebuilding of the house emotionally and socially, if you like, since the effects of the First World War.”
Coyle, an actor born in England to an Irish father and Scottish mother, chatted with fans online after the second season finale and dished about the fate of his popular character John Bates, Lord Grantham’s valet, who was last seen marrying head housemaid Anna (played by Froggatt) before being tried and found guilty of murdering his horrible ex-wife Vera, played by Doyle.
“He begins Series 3 in prison,” Coyle teased. “I can't say anymore, honestly.”
Insisting he has no idea if a Baby Bates might be on the way, the actor went on to assure fans the show will have plenty of romance and intrigue to hold their attention next season.
“There is a wedding. Or two?” he said, possibly alluding to Lady Mary’s on-off engagement to her cousin and Downton Abbey heir Matthew Crawley, played by Dockery and Stevens respectively.
“Shirley MacLaine is amongst us,” Coyle added. “The scripts are superb. Stick with us.”
Coyle described the addition of MacLaine as the Countess of Grantham’s mother as “ingenious.”
“She is much loved here,” he said. “Her scenes are brilliant and I can assure you she will be a dazzling addition to ‘Downton Abbey.’”
So, what is it about his quiet, honorable character that so many people find appealing?
“I think it harks back to a time when people didn't always 'express themselves' or talk about 'how they feel.' His stoicism and restraint seem to have struck a chord,” offered Coyle, who began his career in the Irish theater and co-starred in the TV movie “Omagh,” miniseries “North and South” and drama series “Lark Rise to Candleford.”
The actor said he looked to his own family for inspiration when figuring out how to play Bates.
“I thought a great deal about my two grandfathers who I was lucky enough to know into my 20s,” he noted. “Strong, stoic gentlemen -- one Irish, one Scottish -- that I was privileged to know. I watched ‘Gosford Park’ and read about the period and the Boer War which his Lordship and I did serve in.”
Asked by one cheeky fan if he was startled to learn there are a number of American women who would “like to rip Mr. Bates' stiff collar off with their teeth,” Coyle didn’t miss a beat and replied: “Beyond startled. Somewhat bemused; very amused. Americans have lovely teeth.”
Kennedy said she had a blast playing Bates’s treacherous estranged spouse Vera, even if it was only in a few episodes of Season 2.
“It was just so hilarious. I never, ever played such a witch in my life before, never. You always hear actors say witches are the best to play, but they really are fun,” the Dubliner told the Irish Echo in a recent phone interview. “Because it’s a period piece… it’s all kind of contained and there’s this terribly fake nice language. So, she’s sipping her tea very delicately and at the same time saying, ‘Well, here I am and I’m going to ruin your life…’ It was just hilarious and not something I get to do normally. I really enjoyed it.”
The actress, who is known for her roles in “The Tudors,” “The Commitments,” “The General” and “The Matchmaker,” will soon be seen in Fellowes’ “Titanic” miniseries, which will air on ABC in April.
“We had a big press launch in London for ‘Titanic…’ and Julian and I were on a panel together with a couple of the other actors – Toby Jones and Linus Roache -- and the producers, so because I was right beside him and we were hanging out for a little while, I tried to convince Julian to let me come back to ‘Downton Abbey’ to do a bit of haunting, but he wasn’t really going for it, no,” she laughed.
