Downton Abbey in a hotel, or so The Guardian calls it. ITV's new period drama is apparently really supposed to be the replacement for Downton Abbey. Set in a luxury hotel in London during WWII there'll be drama, love, politics and everything else. No gays in episode one, though. I enjoyed the premiere but wasn't blown away. Solid enough quality, I'll probably stick around.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 29 | August 16, 2018 2:05 AM |
Here's the main cast. For some reason they decided to go with the more normal looking guys. Matt Ryan is certainly a pretty guy but I wouldn't have minded more eye candy. Sounds totally superficial and I wouldn't call these guys ugly (although I'm sure some of you would) but still. Well, maybe they'll have great personalities.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 1 | January 4, 2017 5:48 AM |
Did no one in the UK watch this?
| by Anonymous | reply 2 | January 7, 2017 10:24 AM |
No there weren't. I hope there'll be at some point.
| by Anonymous | reply 4 | January 7, 2017 10:40 AM |
I saw it. Sad to see that Olivia Williams is reduced to playing a basic bitch. Hopefully, that will change.
There were no gay characters revealed in the first episode, but for some reason I thought that maybe the majordomo character might be gay. He has a grown daughter though and was/is presumably married. So I could be way off.
I was entertained by it and will continue to watch the series, Not really sure if you should sell it as the next Downton Abbey.
| by Anonymous | reply 5 | January 7, 2017 10:42 AM |
There's definitely a moment of gay action in the trailer (for the whole series). The young guy in the tux, second row left in the pictures, puts his hand on the bartender's hand and they share a "knowing" look.
In the linked picture, the young guy is second row right now, and the guy who is apparently his forbidden love is standing right next to him (don't know the actors' names)
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 7 | January 7, 2017 11:14 AM |
R5, it did cross my mind he might be gay. However I have a feeling he's going to be the love interest for Lady Hamilton a.k.a. Olivia Williams. I'm suspecting one of her sons might be gay, and ends up shagging a staff member. Hopefully, I guess... I didn't really like either of the sons. I'd really love Matt Ryan's journalist to be gay.
Still, a hotel setting is great for drama. You can have any kinds of people appear out of nowhere and do all kinds of crazy things, and it's just business as usual.
R6, there were possibly small hints but I didn't see anyone truly being brought out as gay, or did I miss some clues? At this point I suspect Lady Hamilton's rounder faced son might be gay.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 8 | January 7, 2017 11:16 AM |
[quote]Did no one in the UK watch this?
Yes. I stopped after about 10 minutes.
It will therefore probably be a big hit.
| by Anonymous | reply 9 | January 7, 2017 11:19 AM |
R7, ok, I haven't seen the trailer but it sounds like the rounder faced son really is then shagging a staff member ;) I'm alright with that.
| by Anonymous | reply 10 | January 7, 2017 11:19 AM |
Edward Bluemel is the actor playing the gay twin - and the description here hints at it (figuring out his romantic feelings)
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 11 | January 7, 2017 11:20 AM |
What a cheap looking set...this is no Downton.
| by Anonymous | reply 12 | January 7, 2017 11:56 AM |
Yes, the younger twin is gay
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 13 | January 7, 2017 12:14 PM |
R12, did you watch the premiere? The sets looked great.
| by Anonymous | reply 14 | January 7, 2017 12:19 PM |
I agree with R12 about the sets. Very "TV-on-a-budget".
The exterior is obviously a school and far from looking like any type of grand London hotel.
The interiors don't know what they want to be, besides awful. Did every interior set have a different set-decorator with a different script? Edwardian? check. Deco? check. Are we in the same hotel? No we're not, judging from the vastly different looking decorating styles.
The lobby reminds me of "Are You Being Served?" A too-small sound stage plus a too-small budget make for a done-quickly on a tight budge sit-com-reminiscent set. The corridors are terribly drab and empty with an unfortunate color scheme and then you go into the rooms that are very busy over-done heavy Edwardian, forgetting that it's a hotel.
How about Lord Hamilton's girlfriend with the ridiculous blonde wig that looks like it was plomped down on her head mere seconds before cameras rolled.
Hamilton's son just joined the RAF, so obviously he's going to get shot down in a future episode.
| by Anonymous | reply 15 | January 7, 2017 1:26 PM |
Oh man, I really have tried to like the show but for some reason I just don't enjoy watching it. I believe they made serious errors in the casting, and the storylines themselves don't feel too hot. That said I wasn't too wild about Downton Abbey either all the time, and it certainly was never one of my favorite shows.
| by Anonymous | reply 16 | January 17, 2017 7:01 PM |
Season 1 just wrapped up. Practically each week I wondered why am I watching this yet returned the next week. I can honestly say I probably truly liked only one episode, episode 5 or 6. Most of the time the show left me frustrated even if I enjoyed watching it to a point. I almost hated the gay storyline. It was nothing we haven't seen countless times before, and the guys themselves were annoying. The reality is most of the characters left me cold. The main het romance of the show was dull as hell since the characters lacked chemistry, and once again were quite unlikable.
I had no problems with the production quality or the sets. With better writing I might've even liked the characters since as actors they were totally fine.
I was never a huge fan of Downton Abbey since the show certainly went too silly for too many times, but still, most of the times they at least got the basics right.
| by Anonymous | reply 17 | February 21, 2017 5:24 AM |
I really enjoyed the show. Never got into Downton or the Other ITV one. It took a couple of episodes to settle into itself but most new shows do so gave it a chance. It has been slightly up and down in terms of story quality but a couple of the episodes have been fantastic.
| by Anonymous | reply 18 | February 21, 2017 9:19 AM |
Dancing on the Edge was a mini-series a few years ago. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it. Fantastic acting, set in the early 30s.
| by Anonymous | reply 19 | February 21, 2017 10:29 AM |
Who is that fat womon in the gold dress?
Dreadful.
| by Anonymous | reply 20 | February 21, 2017 10:47 AM |
Watched it on the ITV hub. Had enough after 20 min.
| by Anonymous | reply 22 | February 21, 2017 3:01 PM |
Thanks for the recommendation [R19] I'm downloading as I type.
| by Anonymous | reply 23 | February 21, 2017 5:28 PM |
It is nice enough. I prefer the gay storyline of this show over the one in Dowton Abbey.
Though the show seems a bit, I don't know, romance heavy? To me it seems like 90 % of the stories involve romance drama within war times and the rest is drama related to war times. Episode six was the stand-out for me. That's when the show's villain emerged and also the sad drama conclusion of the maid and her soldier boyfriend.
I kind of wish there had been more bickering between Richard Garland (Steven Macintosh) and Lady Hamilton (Olivia Williams). My biggest beef with the show is that Olivia Williams was almost criminally underutilized and stuck with a thankless storyline (grieving widow who acts like a little schoolgirl when a younger man shows interest in her).
| by Anonymous | reply 24 | February 22, 2017 6:37 PM |
I just binged watched this one. How come the two sons (who should be the hottest guys in the show) are so fugly. Were all the sexy actors too expensive? And the gay son is wall-eyed? WTF?
| by Anonymous | reply 26 | August 16, 2018 1:44 AM |
It's in a hotel? Is there a part for me?
| by Anonymous | reply 27 | August 16, 2018 2:00 AM |
Is there any US outlet for it?
| by Anonymous | reply 29 | August 16, 2018 2:05 AM |
