But Laura insists she’ll be forever grateful to the period drama that made her a star and has kept the global fame in perspective.
“I don’t find it too much of a change,” she says.
“My friends are still the same. That extraordinary journey Downton took was so exciting. No one would have expected George Clooney would visit the set and we’d end up at the Golden Globes
“So people are excited to hear about that. And I’m excited to tell people about it as it’s been really lovely.”
Marcella was filmed on location in London but Laura says she looks so different from her upper class period character she didn’t get spotted too much.
And the complete change of pace in the crime drama starring Anna Friel as a former cop back on the trail of a serial killer was welcome.
“I loved the scripts and immediately wanted to do it,” she explains.
“It’s really cool but dark and all of the things you like in a thriller.
“It’s exactly what I was looking for after Lady Edith.
“It’s so good to do something completely different and modern and young and complex. I was really excited.
“After Downton I started work on a film called A United Kingdom at the end of October 2015 and then started Marcella at the beginning of November.”
Working alongside Anna took Laura back to earlier acting days.
“My West End stage debut was with Anna doing Uncle Vanya,” she reveals. “Working with her again has been lovely. My first day on Marcella was actually with Anna so that was great.
“It’s so nice when you’ve worked with someone before and you know each other well.”
Marcella, ITV, Mon, 9pm.
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