The period dramas that have transformed television viewing forever.
1. Downton Abbey
The Crawleys might not quite be royalty, but they rule the TV ratings.
The most-expensive British TV drama ever made, Downton Abbey is a global phenomenon, with the goings-on at the Granthams’ country pile grabbing viewers by the million from Chicago to Shanghai.
Why? Well, because it’s the perfect example of something we Brits do better than the rest the TV costume drama.
We’ve been making them for years. Logie Baird had barely invented the gogglebox before we were adapting Dickens and Jane Austen for the small screen.
Costume dramas are always good for weaving real events into the storyline and Julian Fellowes, Downton’s creator, is a master of this.
The Titanic disaster, the First World War and the Spanish Flu epidemic have all touched the lives of those on the Yorkshire country estate.
And in class-conscious Britain, we’re suckers for tales that show both toffs and servants.
But Downton, back on our screens this Sunday, wouldn’t be half as fantastic without its incredible cast. Hugh Bonneville, Jim Carter, Michelle Dockery and the rest carry it off with aplomb, but even they can’t hold a candle to Dame Maggie Smith.
They should just hand her the BAFTA every year.
2. Brideshead Revisited
The greatest British TV drama until Downton stole its crown.
There were first-rate performances throughout from all-time greats Gielgud and Olivier, and it made a star of Jeremy Irons as Charles Ryder who is introduced to the aristocratic way of life by his fellow Oxford undergraduate, Anthony Andrews.
But just as important was the look of the series with high production values that made the 1920s look effortlessly stylish.
3. Upstairs, downstairs
The original and best version ran on ITV in the first half of the 70s, and is often touted as a prototype for today’s Downton.
Written by Eileen Atkins and Jean Marsh, who played housemaids, there are massive similarities between the two.
Upstairs, Downstairs told the story of an upper-class family and its servants against a backdrop of historic events, but in 165 Eaton Place, Belgravia, not the north.
And for my money, Gordon Jackson’s Mr Hudson knocks Downton’s Carson into a cocked hat.
4. Bleak House
The Beeb gives us good Dickens, and this 2005 series was simply the best.
It was cleverly produced in twice-weekly 30-minute episodes to mirror the original novel’s serialisation in monthly instalments Dickens does Dynasty, if you like.
It was dark, dramatic and gorgeous and I’m not just talking about Gillian Anderson who shone brightest in a stellar cast as the haughty, but delicious, Lady Dedlock.
5. The Forsyte Saga
The fortunes of the upper middle-class Forsytes paved the way for Downton’s international success, breaking audience records in the US and being the first BBC series sold to the Soviet Union.
This was despite the fact it was the last Beeb drama shot in black and white, which has kept it off our screens since colour came in.
When the adventures of Kenneth More, Eric Porter, Susan Hampshire and Nyree Dawn Porter were repeated on Sunday evenings in 1968, a massive 18 million tuned in, with pubs closing early and churches rescheduling services.
6. Pride And Prejudice
The Beeb’s 1995 adaptation of Jane Austen’s classic remains the definitive bonnet ’n’ bodice romance.
This was chiefly the result of the incredible chemistry between the leads, Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth as Elizabeth Bennet and Mr Darcy.
The scene when the latter emerged from a lake in a drenched shirt and breeches made Firth a bona fide star.
7. The Jewel In The Crown
Set during the last days of the Raj and filmed on location in India, this made household names of Art Malik, Charles Dance and Tim Piggott-Smith.
Malik was terrific as the English-educated Indian journalist and Dance, despite being better known now for villainous roles, was perfect as an upright police sergeant.
But Piggott-Smith was supremely horrible as the loathsome, sweaty police officer Merrick who imprisons and tortures Malik even though he knows him to be innocent of attacking an English woman.
8. When The Boat Comes In
Unlike many other costume dramas, this didn’t bother with the upper crust and stuck solidly with its working-class hero.
Set in the north-east in the 1920s, it stared James Bolam as a First World War veteran who returns to the poverty-stricken town of Gallowshield.
Bolam proved he was more than just a Likely Lad and briefly made cloth caps cool.
9. Poldark
A romantic saga set in 18th-century Cornwall among derelict tin mines sounds an unlikely hit, but this was sold to more than 40 countries.
A heady brew of class barriers, ill-starred lovers, smugglers and simmering passions, on video, Poldark outsold every costume drama apart from Pride And Prejudice.
No wonder the Beeb have announced a new version to be broadcast next year.
10. The Duchess Of Duke Street
I was only six when this aired in 1976, but I remember being transfixed by the story of Gemma Jones working her way up from servant to owner of the posh Bentinck Hotel in St James’s.
Created by the producer of Upstairs, Downstairs, it was loosely based on Rosa Lewis, the “Duchess of Jermyn Street”, who ran the Cavendish.
Both Duchesses had a relationship with Edward VII before he became king, a major plot for the programme.
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