Behind the Scenes at Downton Abbey (10 page)

There is another chance for gossip just out of sight of the camera. ‘A lot of the time when we do those big scenes in the servants’ hall, if we are going to be needed five or ten minutes later they have what they call a herding area for us just off the set,’ says Phyllis Logan. ‘They put chairs out and we all congregate there and just chat between ourselves.’

Historically the kitchen was the busiest room in a house the size of Downton Abbey. Out of it would come eight meals a day for the family and servants, not to mention any extra food required for guests.

The design of this part of the set was influenced by the kitchens in old English country houses. Using a kitchen in a real stately home was not an option, because even the unmodernised ones have low ceilings and a general gloom, which makes filming a challenge.

Painstakingly recreated, the set is realistic, featuring running taps, but is also designed with filming in mind. For instance, the tiling behind the stove can be removed to allow cameras to shoot through the wall, to show the flurry of activity over pots and pans. However, only ‘a couple of the hobs work and it is just steam that comes out of the ovens’, notes Lesley Nicol (Mrs Patmore). Steam often comes out of Mrs Patmore’s ears, too. ‘If anything goes wrong it’s a disaster,’ says Nicol. ‘She’s not a bully, she just has high standards, like many chefs.’

When
Downton
began, bedroom scenes were filmed at Highclere, but the limited space once cast, crew and cameras were in the room made filming difficult. Now these scenes are shot on sets at Ealing. ‘We realised that, because we can just take a wall out in the studio, you can have all the crew in a room and we suddenly have a lot more space to work in,’ says John Prendergast, assistant location manager.

Space constraints on the stage mean it is not practical to keep every set up in situ for the entire period of filming. The kitchen complex does remain in place, but alongside it there is a constant flurry of set-building, painting, set-dressing and finally dismantling going on. Robert’s dressing room doubles as the nursery or Tom Branson’s bedroom, for instance, while Cora’s bedroom is first transformed into Edith’s and then Mary’s. The walls are movable, so their positions and even those of the rooms’ windows change, with the construction department all the while referring to their technical drawings of the sets for consistency throughout a series. If necessary, a set can be transformed into another room overnight.

Props add a personal touch. Positioned around the room will be whatever book Mary might be reading – a small volume of Tennyson, for instance. ‘This year I’ve noticed that on set – not just in my bedroom, but in the library, too – there are pictures of Matthew and Mary’s wedding around and little reminders of him,’ says actress Michelle Dockery. ‘There’s also one of Dan [Stevens], as Matthew, on my dressing table. That is what is so wonderful about this show; in every department the attention to detail is phenomenal.’