‘Downton Abbey’ Christmas special spoilers: What to expect in closing season 3

While “Downton Abbey” may have technically had their season finale last month, you could still consider the Christmas special airing on Tuesday night really as the last installment that fits within the chapter-book known as season 3. After all the stories present here will tie in largely to what we saw this fall, and it will serve as a nice bride to what is going to be coming up when season 4 launches several months down the road next year.

So what exactly can you expect? We’ve posted a variety of details and handed out interview snippets over the past month and a half, but think of this as your handy primer for all spoiler-free information that has been released already about the hour. (Of course, you should still not read on if you are in America and are waiting patiently for the season 3 premiere on PBS; this does contain some spoilers for the first eight episodes.)

After you met Rose in the last episode of the show, this episode will feature Robert, Cora, and their children heading north to visit Duneagle Castle, the estate run by her family. This will be thought of as a nice family getaway at the end of summer, which is when this episode is set rather than Christmas, and will hopefully help to restore a sense of camaraderie after everything the family has been through in between the Sir Anthony incident and Sybil’s death. However, not everything up north is going to go as planned. You should expect some emotional moments and even some tears before the episode is done, though that is all we are at liberty to say here.

As for life back at the Abbey, the majority of the servants are still going to be present there and doing their best at driving Mr. Carson absolutely insane. After all, they feel as though they have a longer leash now, but there is still a festival coming up to prepare for. Somewhere along the way, Mrs. Patmore is going to potentially find a new love interest, and we are also going to meet another new member of the staff before the story comes to a close here.

In closing, remember this: the feeling of struggling to change with the times has been a recurring theme throughout season 3, and that will remain here … especially for the character in Robert who has struggled with that the most.

If you want to see some recent “Downton Abbey”-related videos featuring Hugh Bonneville and Joanne Froggatt, all you have to do is head on over to the link here.

Photo: ITV