{"id":5376,"date":"2016-03-07T07:04:07","date_gmt":"2016-03-07T12:04:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/?p=5376"},"modified":"2016-03-17T07:02:52","modified_gmt":"2016-03-17T11:02:52","slug":"goodbye-to-all-that","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vweisfeld.com\/?p=5376","title":{"rendered":"Goodbye to All That"},"content":{"rendered":"
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(photo: Alex Proimos, creative commons license)<\/p><\/div>\n

It\u2019s a blue Monday for fans of Downton Abbey<\/em>, or Abbots as we\u2019re called.The soapsuds around Highclere Castle are subsiding, people upstairs are learning to pour their own tea or at least let Mr. Barrow help, and Mr. Carson has been given a dictionary with the word \u201cvicarious\u201d circled in it. And the programmers at PBS responsible for its All Downton All the Time schedule of specials are decidedly nervous.<\/p>\n

Downton<\/em> has been a money-making machine. It’s \u201cthe most-viewed drama in PBS\u2019s 45 years,\u201d helping the American broadcaster gain a worldwide audience estimated at some 120 million people, Forbes<\/em> reports<\/a>, <\/em>with global merchandising revenue hitting $250 million in 2014. More satisfying than any of that is that revenues to beautiful Highclere Castle<\/a>\u2014in need of nearly $20 million in repairs six years ago\u2014have enabled the owners to restore it fully and secure its future.<\/p>\n

But Downton<\/em> has built this mega-empire not because viewers were interested in public television\u2019s resurgence or castle restoration, but because it\u2019s fun! It\u2019s entertaining to see how other people live and the depths of misery in the midst of high posh. You can put your own expertise on the downs of Downton<\/em> to the test. The New York Times<\/em><\/a> offers a quiz<\/strong> to see how many calamities the characters have endured that you can recognize. I scored 22 out of 39 points. Hint: Thomas pretty much had them all.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not surprised to receive regular Downton-related promotions from Masterpiece sponsor Viking River Cruises. Farther afield is the advertising I received yesterday for \u2018Downton Abbey\u2019 roses<\/a>. I can fill my garden with Anna\u2019s Promise (coral), Violet\u2019s Pride (violet, natch), Lady Edith\u2019s darling (in a shade closest to Marigold), and the Pretty Lady Rose rose (fuchsia). We\u2019re only missing Lady Mary\u2019s Heart, which I suppose is not offered because (after the recent treatment of Edith) roses don\u2019t come in black. Though she\u2019s trying.<\/p>\n

In case you think what you\u2019ll miss most are Dowager Countess Violet\u2019s zingers,<\/strong> here\u2019s a whole list of them<\/a>. One of my favorites: \u201cI don\u2019t dislike him, I just don\u2019t like him. Which is quite different.\u201d Indeed. Or last night\u2019s \u201cWhy can\u2019t men ever paint themselves out<\/em> of a corner?\u201d<\/p>\n

If your withdrawal symptoms are too acute, Chanel Cleeton<\/a> for BookBub has prepared a list of books to help you through it. (I see House of Mirth<\/em> on the list. I thought that was going to be Julian Fellowes\u2019s next big project\u2014a series about New York in the Gilded Age?) Top of the BookBub list: Wendy Wax\u2019s romantic While We Were Watching Downton Abbey<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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