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A friend of mine said you should watch Upstairs Downstairs I missed in 1971 living abroad. I was able to buy a full copy.
First off i have to say that the first series is a bit confusing as it is in black and white for 6 episodes (due to a strike at the time with the broadcasting company), and one of the main characters leave the house at the end of episode 1, and is seen again episode 2, as though nothing happened, so i had to google again to find out why. Sarah played brilliantly by Pauline Collins. This was a continuation issue as the series was sold to the USA, so it was changed slightly to accommodate continuity or something. Anyway it didn't spoil it for me, once i knew what was happening.
Each episode you get to meet more characters and their 'ways'. I loved Lady Marjorie, and Richard Bellamy not sure at the time about their spoilt kids. Downstairs wow I felt there was more snobbery going on down there then up them stairs. Hudson well played superbly and just like I would expect a good butler to be, Mrs Bridges I adored, and Rose. Ruby poor little ruby, who I felt so sorry for. Sarah introduced who was a bit of a larf and made everyone happy but she was a really sad person behind the mask.
Rose down trodden Rose who would just do everything for anyone, and made a rod for her own back, i could have shook her a few times was so happy when she found someone and fell in love finally but......
I found the story lines at times quite risqué. We had a terrible suicides which made me cry, also the writer introduced a homosexuality scene, and even though this was in earlier episodes, one of the characters was very cleverly bought back and shown how even in the twenties young men were coerced to be sex slaves.
Then the perfect Lady Marjorie and adultery, i didn't see that one coming nor did i see her leaving the show. (I read since she told one of the actors she had made a mistake and should have stayed).
Elizabeth crazy bored spoilt child who tried to make amends in her life, and sadly she left the series, i was gutted, as i could feel a lot more could have been done with her character.
James again another spoilt brat who thought it was OK to toy with the emotions of the staff but came good when he married his fathers secretary Hazel who i adored i think she played a really good part in the series.
Over the series the characters started to develop and i become more embroiled in it, and the stories more interesting. I did find the first episode a bit like I was sitting on a fence, should i carry on or not, but i am glad i did, as from 2 - 5 it became one of the best i have seen.
I wont go into it too much, suffice to say, each character was played brilliantly, the writing was superb, the war years and the zeppelins, well i didn't realise they did bombing raids, so learnt something new
New characters introduced Edward who came back from the war shell shocked, he married Daisy a new housemaid, i loved their relationship.
Georgina the orphaned member of the family who was a tearaway but played superbly and believably by Leslie Anne-Down, had nothing to do, just parties, but came good in the war, but afterwards her subsequent behaviour was to be the end of someone.
I cried over James, sad though that some of the characters kept disappearing for episodes, we seemed to miss a lot of their lives etc.
I loved the episode in Scotland with Hudson and the keeper of the salmon naughty Hudson.
I did find a lot of racism in the show which was highlighted and Hudson was one of the worse for it.
Mrs Bridges i could have cheerfully hit when she bullied and belittled Ruby. I actually went off her character to be honest. BUT she redeemed herself over Hudson when he got sick.
The writer finished the series really well. I do think though we could have had a bit more of Thomas and Sarah, even if we were just given an insight into their life alongside. I did love Richards new wife, Virginia who looked remarkably like Marjorie and the two children, again who suddenly just disappeared.
Maybe when you see it weekly you don't notice but when you binge watch you can see all the missing people who are there one minute and gone the next.
I was very sad when i finally watched the last ever episode but it was written really well.
score 9/10
zendatrim 7 September 2017
Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw3800334/ |
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17-1-2021 11:15:08