Broadway stars get together to "preview" Downton Abbey Series 4's premiere musical episode, with "Julian Fellowes" (Colin Mochrie) providing commentary. (10m). [more inside]
posted by hippybear on Apr 23, 2013 - 21 comments

Jimmy Fallon -- 'Downton Sixby' -- Episodes I, II, III and IV.
posted by ericb on Feb 16, 2013 - 15 comments

Downton Abbey for the SNES. (SLYT, sadly not a real game. via tor.com)
posted by gamera on Jan 29, 2013 - 26 comments

Kathryn Bigelow's striking bin Laden manhunt thriller Zero Dark Thirty arrives in wide release tonight on the heels of a final artful trailer -- one with oddly familiar musical accompaniment. The funereal hymn, a cover of Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters" (lyrics), deftly recasts the 90s power ballad as a haunting dirge of quiet grief, shattered ideals, and a singleminded focus on revenge, a perfect distillation of the film's profoundly grim thesis. But while the song may be fitting, it wasn't composed for the project -- it's just the latest success story from Belgian women's choir Scala & Kolacny Brothers, whose mournful reinterpretations of classic and modern rock -- catapulted by their rendition of "Creep" in The Social Network -- have made them famous around the world, with star turns in the likes of Homeland ("Every Breath You Take") and Downton Abbey ("With or Without You"). Cover comparison site WhoSampled offers a list of YouTube comparisons between the covers and the originals; look inside for more of their work in movies and television. [more inside]
posted by Rhaomi on Jan 11, 2013 - 46 comments

Houndton Tabby is an Etsy store filled with amazing portraits of the Downton Abbey cast, but as cats and dogs. [via mefi projects]
posted by mathowie on Jan 7, 2013 - 28 comments

Downton Abbey returns to American TV screens this Sunday. Since many Americans have become fascinated with the intricate social dances featured in the English drama/soap, Grantland feels there's an opportunity to provide them a lesson about the equally intricate plot machinations associated with the English Premier League. I give you the "English Premier League to Downton Abbey plot converter." [more inside]
posted by modernnomad on Jan 4, 2013 - 29 comments

David Mitchell discusses the second series of Downton Abbey.
posted by nadawi on Sep 14, 2012 - 69 comments

"Historical dramas have a lot in common with science fiction when you consider how alien/exotic the settings might seem to a contemporary audience. As a kind of squeakquel to the Arthur C. Clarke maxim; “any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic,” I’d like to assert that any sufficiently different set of social mores in a historical context is indistinguishable from an alternate universe. Consider the following bizzaro dimension: limited electricity, paranoia related to class struggles, shifting loyalties, and rigid caste system. Could it be Battlestar Galactica? Yes, But it’s also Downton Abbey!" [more inside]
posted by Blasdelb on May 7, 2012 - 50 comments

Downton Arby's. (SLYahooVideo)
posted by robocop is bleeding on Mar 29, 2012 - 38 comments

Metafilter likes cats and Downton Abbey, right? I present Downton Tabby (SLYT)
posted by lizjohn on Feb 25, 2012 - 21 comments

The makers of Downton Abbey take great care to recreate the look and feel of the period in which it is set. But occasionally anachronisms in the dialogue slip through.
posted by Horace Rumpole on Feb 13, 2012 - 123 comments

Downton Abbey has become one of the UK's most popular drama series of recent years and will take pride of place in ITV's schedule with a special episode(video) on Christmas Day that is said to be so good as to be potentially 'vomit inducing'. [more inside]
posted by fearfulsymmetry on Dec 23, 2011 - 92 comments