Upstairs, Downstairs is a British television drama series created by Jean Marsh and Eileen Atkins, and developed by Alfred Shaughnessy for London Weekend Television. The series consists of 68 hour-long episodes that aired in the United Kingdom on ITV from 1971 to 1975, in Ireland on RTÉ from 1972 to 1976 and in the United States as part of Masterpiece Theatre on PBS from 1974 to 1977.[1] It was eventually broadcast in over 70 countries to an audience of over one billion viewers.[2]
Rachel Gurney and Nicola Pagett both left the show after the second series. The third series introduced Meg Wynn Owen as Hazel Forrest, Lesley-Anne Down as Georgina Worsley (Richard Bellamy's "niece" – the stepdaughter of Lady Marjorie's late brother Hugo), and Jacqueline Tong as Daisy Peel (another maid).[5] Owen was dropped from the cast after the fourth series and replaced in the fifth by Hannah Gordon as Virginia Hamilton, who becomes Richard Bellamy's second wife. Anthony Andrews also became a regular in the fifth series in the role of Lord Robert Stockbridge, as did Karen Dotrice as Lily Hawkins, another maid in the Bellamy household.[6]
A total of 68 hour-long episodes were produced and broadcast during the original run of Upstairs, Downstairs. They are listed in order of their original airing in the UK.
Series 1 (1971–72)
The first series is set from November 1903 to June 1908 and consists of 13 episodes that aired in two separate sections (October–November 1971 and January–March 1972). For this series the show won the BAFTA for Best Drama.[7]
The first six episodes were made in black and white due to a strike at the ITV companies.[13] When colour facilities became available again midway through production of the series, London Weekend Television remade the first episode in colour at the end of the first series block, thus making the series more marketable for overseas broadcasts. The original black-and-white version was subsequently destroyed. Two colour versions of the episode were edited, with the episode intended for overseas broadcast showing Sarah (Pauline Collins) leaving Eaton Place (as she does in "Board Wages") to maintain the series' continuity with the black-and-white episodes omitted.[14]
For original showings in the United States, three episodes from the first British series and ten from the second were merged into a single season of 13 episodes. These 13 episodes that were shown in the US were the Series 1 episodes 1, 10 and 13, and the Series 2 episodes 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13. The 13 unused episodes in the US from the first two series were eventually shown in the autumn/fall of 1988 under the banner "The Missing Episodes".[1]
In August 1904, the Bellamys are away summering in Scotland. The senior servants are also away. The junior servants carouse drunkenly through the house and mock their employers whilst dressed up as the family. They are caught by James Bellamy (Simon Williams), the son of the family, who takes on the role of butler. Sarah continues her mocking and James kisses her. He promises not to disclose her misbehaviour. After this Sarah Moffat, annoyed by James's high-handed attitude, leaves Eaton Place.[15][16]
In May, 1905 Elizabeth Bellamy (Nicola Pagett), introduced in this episode, returns from studying in Germany. She wants to make the entrée into London society and her society debut. She has an abundance of "radical" notions and a noncomformist behaviour. During her first society ball, at which she is to be presented to King Edward VII she runs away.[17][18]
In December 1905, Elizabeth Bellamy falls in love with Baron Klaus von Rimmer, a German who turns out to be homosexual. He claims to be in Britain to work in his family's bank but that doesn't fool Richard. The Baron eventually admits to being an arms dealer who wants to sell a new naval gun mount to the British. Richard realizes exactly what he's up to - especially after the Baron offers him a bribe. Before the police arrive to arrest him for arms dealing, he flees Eaton Place with the footman Alfred to Germany after they are caught by Rose in a compromising situation (i.e. having sexual relations.) Not wishing Elizabeth to know any of the real reasons for his departure, she is told that he is a spy.[19][20] The ″baron fled, dumping Elizabeth and taking Alfred with him instead!″[21]
In 1906 Lady Marjorie Bellamy leaves with Rose for the country, but while Rose is gone the new under-house-parlour maid, Mary Stokes, arrives in service pregnant. She says that she has found herself pregnant after being sexually assaulted and raped by Myles Radford, the son of Mary's previous employer and Richard's powerful politician and family friend. Richard Bellamy takes pity on Mary and attempts to help her. But the Radfords refuse to take responsibility and the legal system proves ineffective. Richard finds himself threatened with legal action if he continues with his accusations against Radford and finds himself facing rumours that he was the father. Sir Geoffrey tells Richard to send Mary away, so she quits her job with the Bellamys, but she departs with a small gift of money from some of the servants.[22]
For its second series Upstairs, Downstairs is set from 1908 to 1910. As with the first series a total of 13 episodes were produced. This time all were made in colour. As mentioned above, the first season broadcast in the United States was a conglomeration of three and ten episodes from, respectively, the first and second British series.[3] For its first American season, Upstairs, Downstairs won the 1974 Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series while Jean Marsh was nominated for an Emmy as Best Lead Actress in a Drama Series.[9]
Set in the summer of 1909, Elizabeth Wallace, formerly Elizabeth Kirbridge née Elizabeth Bellamy, (b. 1887) is the daughter of Richard and Lady Marjorie Bellamy and the sister of James. Julius Karekin is a wealthy Armenian gentleman and businessman and he is Elizabeth's new lover. Julius successfully manages the stocks Elizabeth inherited from a recently deceased great-aunt and buys her a hat shop in Mayfair's Brook Street to manage. She renames it Madame Yvonne. Her parents don't like Julius and they don't want to receive him. To further his influence, Karekin buys the lease on 165 Eaton Place. The £5600 lease is put up for sale upon Lord Southwold's death in 1909. He offers the lease to Elizabeth to help save her parents from eviction. She then gives the deed to her parents. He uses her to further his career and contacts. Owing to Richard Bellamy's connections, he becomes a good friend of Arthur Balfour, a financial adviser to the Tory Party, and a candidate for membership in the exclusive Pall Mall men's club, the Athenaeum.[23][unreliable source?]
Series Four of Upstairs, Downstairs is set during the period of World War I (1914–1918) and consists of 13 colour episodes.[25] This series won an Emmy for Outstanding Limited Series, and Gordon Jackson won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series. Jean Marsh, Angela Baddeley and Christopher Hodson received Emmy nominations for, respectively, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actress, and Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series.[9]
The fifth and final series is set in the post-war period of 1919–1930 and consists of 16 colour episodes.[6] Once again Upstairs, Downstairs won an Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series while Jacqueline Tong received a nomination for Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.[9] The series also received a Peabody Award for this season.[10]
