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Sunday 19 October 2014

Downton Abbey Series 5 Episode 5 Review

                                                   
Robert (Hugh Bonneville) talks about being away for a Lord Lieutenant's dinner in Sheffield and will have to stay the night, as they also mention a cocktail party being planned at Downton, which Cora (Elizabeth McGovern) prefers as you don't have to sit through several courses of dinner.  Rosamund (Samantha Bond) is staying with them for a while and is here cos of Mary's (Michelle Dockery) faux pas, well putting her foot in it, which she didn't realize she'd done after telling her how Edith (Laura Carmichael) is doting on a child.  Rosamund wants to see Marigold.

Mrs Patmore (Lesley Nichol) has been left money by an aunt and she wants to invest it, even if it's only a £100, so she asks for Carson's (Jim carter) advice.  As she later tells Mrs Hughes (Phyllis Logan) it's cos he's a man and as she replies, they like to make them feel they're useful.  Since she rejects his advice and doesn't want to invest in the building trade, i.e. building houses, which Robert has decided they will do and has probably found a firm to do this, which is the same one Carson recommends to Mrs Patmore.  She decides she'd rather buy a cottage and rent it out, then later take in lodgers.

Thomas (Rob James-Collier) looks the worse for wear, as we still don't know what ails him and he still tells Baxter (Raquel Cassidy) to stay out of his way and is curious about Bates (Brendan Coyle) and Green, as the sergeant returns to question Anna (Joanne Froggatt) and Mary with an Inspector Vyner (Louis Hilyer) from London, you could say, 'an Inspector calls' or not!  He questions Mary about whether Anna could have been in London, as she doesn't know where she was all the time and she mentions how they had to rush to catch the train for a fete here the next day.  That's when Gillingham broke the news and Anna was shocked.   As well as asking if Bates was in York or not.

Anna tells him she liked Green and she wouldn't know about Bates liking him, but everyone has their own tastes.   The Inspector telling her not to leave, but she can go to London, was basically telling her you're under suspicion.  Why didn't he just question Bates himself anyway?  Bates later tells Anna he won't let anyone hurt her again and they'll think of this when they're sitting round the fire with their children around them.  She asking how many children he wants.  Seems that even if the finger of suspicion is pointing at either Anna or Bates right now, it'll turn out to be someone completely different from Green's past or maybe an accident after all.  As I don't really see Downton going down prison territory again as they already covered that with Bates and his ex wife, though he was innocent of killing her.  As I wrote this I just thought of Thomas, could it have been Thomas, putting aside his nosiness, especially as he seems particularly interested in whether the sergeant will be coming back again and if he'll be questioning Anna once more?  Hmm, will have to ponder this further!

Mary has a meeting with Charles (Julien Ovenden) in London and he has invited Miss Lane Fox (Catherine Steadman) (or Slain Fox as I call her) so they can settle this thing with Gillingham once and for all. She loves him and was only jilted cos Mary came along and on both occasions Mary says this isn't her idea.  Firstly, to be here and secondly using her to get Gillingham off Mary's back. Though they do enjoy their lunch together.  It's obvious Mary is more interested in Charles since last series.

Edith take Rosamund to see Marigold and this only gets Mrs Drew's (Emma Lowndes) back up as she's busy and she complains to her husband they're only using her as a toy, now Edith's brought her posh relatives to see her.  Drew (Andrew Scarborough) also tells Edith that if she continues to come around his wife will want to leave the farm and move on, taking Marigold with her.  So effectively his hands are tied.  Yet Edith still wants to do the right thing, she's past that now anyway when she had the baby.  Even if Rosamund and the Dowager (Maggie Smith) find out she's got her here and wants to keep her.  Rosamund suggests school in France and she can visit her, but Edith thinks London.  Cora comes in but doesn't hear their conversation.  It seems Edith should trust her mother on this as Cora's not as stuffy and tied up with tradition as Edith seems to think.  She has progressed more with the times and with society.  It will come out eventually, but for now it's still being dragged out for plot purposes.

Rose (Lily James) buys more cake for the Russians who love their cake and bumps into a banker, Atticus Aldridge (Matt Barber) who tells her his family is also Russian, but they moved here many years ago.  She takes him to the tearoom with her and the second time there, he meets Kuragin (Rade Sherbedgia) and another man who raves on about him being from Odessa, the time when the Jews were forced to leave there.  He's leaving for London and Rose would like to see him again.  As she tells everyone over dinner.  Shrimpie has found out the Princess may be working as a nurse near Hong Kong, which the Dowager still sees as beneath her.  As well as getting Dr Clarkson (David Robb) to come to lunch and see if Merton (Douglas Reith) is really interested in Isabel (Penelope Wilton) and medicine, or if he is just using her to ease his loneliness.

Also telling Isabel that Spratt (Jeremy swift) is upset cos Collins will be leaving and he'll not have anyone to boss about when she does go.  The luncheon seems to be a success, as Merton talks of iodine and how goitres can be easily cured by its use.  He's just read of it, though he wishes he studied it.  Dr Clarkson and the Dowager both agree he likes Isabel and also is really interested in medicine as he said.

Bunting (Daisy Lewis) is leaving since she's got a job offer at a grammar school and still manages to rile everyone up, Carson this time, when she turns up to tell them.  Funny no one gave Robert the memo, ha.  She tells Daisy (Sophie McShera) to continue studying and also Daisy can't keep her mouth shut and says it's cos Branson (Allen Leech) won't stick up for her.  daisy getting out of her station, ha, when she tells Brason she's leaving and how, "we're the future, they are the past." Being caught by Carson.  So Branson says goodbye to Bunting (could I add good riddance?) and he tells her she reminded him he's not the only socialist still left, as well as saying that his wife was one of them and so's his daughter.  Bunting replies how she loves him, but there's no hope for them.

Baxter tells Molesley (Kevin Doyle) about her story, only since he asks and he tells her she's a victim and shouldn't be so hard on herself, but it appears she still feels guilty and wants to punish herself. Thomas still noses around about the police sergeant and whether he will be back again.  Anna doesn't know, but she hopes he doesn't and Bates asks why he keeps tormenting her, well cos he can.

Bricker (Richard E Grant) is also coming to take photos of the painting for his book and is only using it as an excuse to see Cora again.  Which was a rather funny scene in terms of Robert returning early and having a bawl with him after he finds him in their bedroom.  Well he was just waiting for the moment to lash out at Bricker as soon as he met him.  A little like he'd do the same if Bunting was a man! ha. But anyone would lash out at her, she was so irritating.   Bricker telling him it's his own fault for the way he treats his wife.   So that gave him carte blanche to enter her room uninvited! Next day he was practically thrown out as his suitcase is already in the car and he looks up at Cora watching him through the window.  His own fault, she did tell him to behave! ha.  Robert is then annoyed with Cora as if she was the cause of the kerfuffle so he sleeps in his dressing room.  Then at the cocktail party, he refuses to talk with her.  

Suppose the best bit had to be rose talking about a nudist spa opening in Essex, with the Dowager adding that it's damp there, so it'll be cold for them.  Isobel remarking how they didn't have the Dowager in mind when they opened it.  Oh, they should get their own show!

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