Downton Abbey Star Shines Doubt Over Show’s Future

Downton Abbey risks being 'boring' as Penelope Wilton admits the show cannot go on forever. *Sob*

Downton Abbey series four pictures
Downton Abbey series four pictures
(Image credit: Rex)

Downton Abbey risks being 'boring' as Penelope Wilton admits the show cannot go on forever. *Sob*

Downton Abbey is going from strength to strength this season, as the fourth series continues to grip viewers with controversial and brave storylines.

But one of the show’s longtime stars has admitted that the future might not be so bright for the period drama.

The Downton Abbey cast of Series 4

The Downton Abbey cast of Series 4
(Image credit: ITV)

British actress, Penelope Wilton, who plays Isobel Crawley, has said that Downton simply cannot go on indefinitely. Sob!

Asked if her character has an indefinite shelf life on the ITV show, Penelope told the Radio Times: “I doubt it. I don’t think anything can go on and on. Everyone would be bored stiff with it.”

While she had plenty of good things to say about her co-stars, which include Dame Maggie Smith and Hugh Bonneville: “We have a very close relationship, all of us, because we have worked over four years together.

Downton Abbey stars begin filming with Penelope Wilton pictures on set

Downton Abbey stars begin filming with Penelope Wilton pictures on set

“We’ve got to know each other very well professionally, so we do interact very well.”

“It is like being in a (theatre) company and all the better for it probably because you can talk in shorthand, as it were, and do more of the acting,” she added.

So it sounds like Penelope would be just as sad to see the show end as we would.

The fourth series of Downton, which began in September, has been the talk of TV land with a string of hard-hitting plots incluing a Anna Bates' rape and the introduction of Downton’s first black cast member.

Joanne Froggatt as Anna Bates in Downton Abbey

Joanne Froggatt as Anna Bates in Downton Abbey
(Image credit: Rex)

Talking about her character’s difficult storyline, Joanne Froggatt has since said: “We all expected there to be a certain controversy when we tackled that subject matter, but I didn’t expect it to be quite as controversial as it has been.

Adding: “I felt all along that we’d handled it very sensitively and I hope people see that as the episodes carry on. I am very proud of the way that Downton as a show has handled that, and I’m very proud of the fact they decided to tackle such an important issue.”

Do you think Downton should end after series four? Let us know in the comments bow below...

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See the Downton Abbey series 4 pictures

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