UPSTAIRS DOWNSTAIRS update on NEW series

[Almira]

Posted: 8/18/10 at 7:53pm

For years I've know the reputation of the show as being truly great television, but I never actually saw an episode. I was too young to watch the original broadcast.

On a whim I decided to borrow a copy of the first season and...

WOW!!!!!!

I am absolutely hooked! I've only seen four episodes and I'm already anticipating a slight sadness when it ends.

Anyone else admirers of the show?





UPDATE:

Here is an article on the NEW series:

http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/showbiz/tv/3091821/Stars-on-set-of-all-new-Upstairs-Downstairs.html

Updated On: 8/27/10 at 07:53 PM

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 8/18/10 at 8:01pm

I had exactly the same experience. I'm a rabid Anglophile (duh) and I knew I was supposed to be a U/D head, but I'd never actually watched them.

When I finally did, I lost my freaking mind.

[Almira]

Posted: 8/18/10 at 8:16pm

I thought I was a pretty serious anglophile myself, but this show is going to put me over the edge.

I may have to marry a limey.

Do we ever find out Sarah's real name? It certainly isn't Clémence.

No wait.. don't tell me. I'll find out when I find out.

[broadwayjim42]

Posted: 8/18/10 at 9:36pm

I've loved the show since its PBS premiere..I even have the paperback novelixations that were published back then. There's also a spin off from '79 that follows Thomas and Sarah.

[sondheimboy2]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 2:15am

I grew up watching that show, way back when.

I remember being heartsick when the show ended.

I read somewhere that Sheldon Harnick and Burton Lane (I think) were working on a musical version of it back in the '70s.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 7:10am

My partner bought the complete series box set, including the spin-off series "Thomas and Sarah" (which only lasted one season).

We JUST finished watching the whole thing about 3 weeks ago! So I'm a latecomer to this, too. I remember my mom watching it and loving it in the mid-'70s, and she told me then that Jean Marsh had lived in the apartment right above her in NYC, when she was pounding the pavement as a young hopeful actress. My mother had a very similar name, and they used to get each other's mail all the time. (Jean was also blind as a bat in real life and wore hugely thick glasses). So they would see each other 2-3 times a week to exchange mail. I don't think Jean lived in NY for very long before heading either to L.A. or back to the UK. But Mom adored her, and she went nuts over the TV show. I was only about 13 or so when it started airing in the US, so I wasn't into it and didn't watch it.

Flash forward to about 4 months ago: we watched the entire thing, and it is so terrific! Almira, the best part is that (if you can believe it) the show actually gets BETTER with each new series. I would say that Season 4 (or "Series 4" if you're UK-bent) is the best. So many changes throughout! Without giving anything away, the best part of this show is that it doesn't stay the same. Characters come and go, situations change, sometimes drastically. It was such a time of change in our world history, too, and it's reflected beautifully in this tele-drama.

So sit back and enjoy! You're in for quite a ride.

As for the spin-off series, it only lasted one season. I enjoyed it quite a bit, and it's worth checking out after you finish "Up-Down" a they used to call it themselves. It's different in tone and approach, but in many ways it's equally entertaining. It was scheduled to continue beyond the first season, but there was a strike which halted production. Once the strike was settled, "Thomas & Sarah" never resumed production and the show was officially cancelled, leaving audiences with quite a cliffhanger ending.

Incidentally, there was also a TV union strike during Season 1 of Upstairs Downstairs, which effected production. That's why several of the earliest episodes were shot in B&W. Once the strike was settled, they were in color from then on out. I actually like some of the B&W. It gives it a whole different feel. I prefer color, though.

Also, there's a lot of bitching about the quality of the DVDs. Apparently, whoever did the conversions from the original PAL videos did a terrible job. I saw some screen captures in a side-by-side comparison, and the UK DVDs look SO much better. Ultimately, I was so entertained by the story and the characters that I didn't let the crappy video quality disturb me ... much. There are some cases where episodes are borderline unwatchable. But you'll struggle through them, I'm sure. And it's definitely worth it!

Updated On: 8/19/10 at 07:10 AM

[Roscoe]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 9:17am

Gotta love Jean Marsh's Rose. The whole cast, basically, they're impeccable.

[broadwayjim42]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 9:31am

Make sure you watch the 25th anniversary documentary that in the first season set...it's pretty amazing all on its own...and search YouTube for a cast reunion at a 2007 awards show.

I became a huge fan of Pauline Collins (Sarah) based on this show. I tacked her career for years, from her mid-70's series with her husband, "No Honestly" (available on VHS). right through "Shirley Valentine."

[Gothampc]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 12:17pm

***Warning, Warning***

Season 1 and Season 2 are very good. But I have to warn you, Seasons 3-5 really slide downhill fast. By the end of the series, the commitment is no longer there. The writing gets silly and they don't know where to take it.

In one of the interviews, may have been the 25th anniversary, it's funny that Jean Marsh (one of the creators of the show) talks about how the actress playing Mrs. Bellamy always got the best dressing room and Jean finally had a meltdown and had to basically say that she was only playing a high society woman and it was an ensemble show and others deserved to be in the better dressing room as some point.

And yes, Pauline Collins is brilliant in this show. Also, you may want to watch the spinoff series with her character "Thomas and Sarah." She stars in it with her real life husband.

Updated On: 8/19/10 at 12:17 PM

[broadwayjim42]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 12:24pm

I just bought it a few weeks ago and can't wait to watch it.

And yes, that story was from the special...there apparently was a "class separation" in terms of dressing rooms until Jean laid down the law.

[SonofMammaMiaSam]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 12:37pm

There is also a great web site with program guides.

http://www.updown.org.uk/

Updown ran during my late high school/college years and I only had a black and white television without cable. The PBS channel was one of only 3 or 4 stations I got with my aluminum foil rabbit ears so I watched it every week!

[Scripps2]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 1:37pm

And Adrian Scarborough, after getting rave reviews for his objectionable house guest in After The Dance, stays in period as the new butler:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1297362/Upstairs-Downstairs-new-cast.html

You just can't get the staff nowadays...

[sondheimboy2]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 3:15pm

I don't really remember "Thomas and Sarah", but I remember watching "No, Honestly" because Thomas and Sarah were on it.

And I remember being so happy to see that, when Pauline Collins won the Tony for "Shirley Valentine", he was sitting next to her and that they were still married.

(And "Upstairs Downstairs" turned me into a "Masterpiece Theatre" fan and I watched it every week until Alistair Cooke retired. I credit "Masterpiece Theatre" with rescueing me from having a Pittsburgh accent. I was born here and have lived here my entire life and I still have people asking me where I'm originally from.)

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 6:00pm

I don't agree with Goth that 1 & 2 are great, but 3-5 slide downhill fast. As I said earlier, I think Season 4 is the best of all of them.

As for the 25th Anniversary special A BIG SPOILER WARNING!!! Do not watch this special before you finish watching the complete series (even though it's included on one of the earliest discs), or you will have some major plot points ruined for you.

Same thing with the (very good) website that breaks down each episode and discusses the seasons. You'll spoil some of the plot if you read too much early on.

Updated On: 8/19/10 at 06:00 PM

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 6:09pm

I credit "Masterpiece Theatre" with rescueing me from having a Pittsburgh accent. I was born here and have lived here my entire life and I still have people asking me where I'm originally from.)

"Well, when you're from Pittsburgh, you have to do something."
- Auntie Mame


Sorry, sondheimboy2. I had to go there! :)

[DayDreamer]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 6:19pm

I saw this show as a kid and loved it, and my ex- and I started watching all from the beginning right after we saw Gosford Park. It was as good as I remember. Unfortunately we broke up right after WWII started, so I have not seen the last bit.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 9:20pm

"Gosford Park" is a great companion piece to Upstairs Downstairs. Not only are a couple of people featured in it who were in the TV series, but one of them is Eileen Atkins, co-creator of Upstairs Downstairs (along with Jean Marsh). And she's wonderful as the cook, locking horns with Helen Mirren.

Another cool companion piece (if you can find it) is the rarely-seen, early Best Picture winner "Cavalcade," by Noel Coward. It's one of two Best Pics not out on DVD (although it's about to be released by Fox in a box set).

It follows the lives of the servants and the upper class in an English household over a large span of time. A very similar premise. And Diana Winyard as the matriarch gives an Oscar-nominated performance. It also features the sinking of the Titanic in its plot.

[sabrelady]

Posted: 8/19/10 at 10:40pm

I got to work With Simon Williams(James Bellamy) when he guested on a show I worked on as a set nurse. I also knew his work from Agony too and he was thrilled to still be remembered for them. He was a little bitter that the cast basically received pennies from all the repeated showings around the world while the producers made $$$ . I think they do get something more for the packaged sets now. He was/is a very sweet, funny man and FAR too good looking!
Good Times.

[fflagg]

Posted: 8/20/10 at 12:24am

UPSTAIRS DOWNSTAIRS is brilliant viewing from start to finish with funny, provocative, and heartbreaking moments.

Jean Marsh, the heartbreaking Rose, who is the backbone of the show. Pauline Collins, only on for the first season and a spitfire. Gordon Jackson [a great actor from THE PRIME OF MISS JEAN BRODIE] as Hudson, Angela Baddeley [Hermione's sister] as Mrs. Bridges, how hard did she work as a cook. :)

Lesley-Anne Down, Simon MacCorkindale, Simon Williams, Cathleen Nesbitt. And viva Lady Prue!

Jean Marsh is working on a feature film version of the story with her starring as Rose.

BTW fans of Pauline Collins must check out her brilliantly funny work in "Wodehouse Playhouse" from the mid-1970s with her hubby John Alderton. Their Britcom "No, Honestly" is not on DVD sad to say. . .

[Almira]

Posted: 8/27/10 at 12:49am

I'm half way through the third series and I'm STILL obsessed.

I found this 5-part documentary on the the making of the entire series.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNaBazi61hA

This a much longer version of the documentary at the end of the first season dvd.

Updated On: 8/27/10 at 12:49 AM

[broadwayjim42]

Posted: 8/27/10 at 7:26am

I've been obsessed for 36 years.

It doesn't go away:)

[Almira]

Posted: 8/27/10 at 2:39pm

Looks like I'm getting familiar with UPSTAIRS DOWNSTAIRS in time for the new series.

Info with pictures on the new series:


http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/showbiz/tv/3091821/Stars-on-set-of-all-new-Upstairs-Downstairs.html

[Scripps2]

Posted: 12/15/10 at 2:49pm

The new series premieres on UK television on December 26th. There are to be three hour long episodes screened on three consecutive nights. The preview is up on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WYKhwiiaIA

Interestingly this series is made by the BBC whereas the original was made by ITV, ITV having scored a huge hit with a similar type of drama earlier this year called Downton Abbey.

I have only seen the odd episode of the original Upstairs Downstairs but the new series will have to be damn good if it is to be as watchable as Downton Abbey.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 12/15/10 at 2:56pm

"The new series premieres on UK television on December 26th."

I wonder who is going to pick it up for the US? PBS or BBCAmerica?

[Scripps2]

Posted: 12/27/10 at 6:34am

I've seen it Darlings; I've seen it!

And the first five minutes was so reverential I wanted to switch off and watch the jolly, green, farting giant that's about to grace the stage of Drury Lane.

But then Anne Reid enters as the new cook and bit of healthy disrespect comes in. It's apparently taken the BBC three years to collate the legal rights to do this and the money spent on legal fees has presumably been omitted from the production budget. If you want opulence stick to Downton Abbey.

And Eileen Atkins, in the compulsory imperious old bag role, at least has an differentiating sub-continent feel to her character. There is a scene towards the end of the first episode where her character sits down on a park bench and talks to Rose Buck, but it may as well be Eileen Atkins talking to Jean Marsh such is the awe the script writers attribute to this programme.

Oh, and did I say it was set in 1936? Well, you can simply guess which true-life historical characters are going to appear can't you! And therein lies a splendid coup de grace that suggests this might have teeth of its own (and the sort that Dame Eileen won't be leaving in a glass on her bedside table).

I do hope so. Episode 2 tonight...