‘Downton Abbey’ season 4 spoilers: Michelle Dockery’s Mary will ‘keep calm and carry on’
We sense that someone right now is totally going straight for the “keep calm and carry on,” meme and putting a picture of Michelle Dockery’s “Downton Abbey” character of Mary in the background. This time, we wouldn’t even be saying it ironically like so many other users of the meme have. She may be stoic and cold, and this may be problematic to some of the other characters on the show, but isn’t she ever resilient?
This is a woman that has been through quite a bit already for a member of the British aristocracy, and at the start of season 4 this fall (at least for those of you who watch the show on ITV), it’s going to start in a place that, to quote a powerful woman on “Game of Thrones”, is dark and full of terrors: Loneliness. Mary will no longer have Matthew, and she has to figure out how to care for her young son, while also adapting to how society views her and her capabilities moving forward as a widow.
When it comes to specific details on the upcoming story, Dockery may be in some ways in the dark. Nonetheless, she teases to the Los Angeles Times that as we push deeper into season 4, we will see some more of Mary’s resilience ultimately come out:
“I haven’t a clue. And that’s what’s brilliant about the show. Julian writes as he goes along, and the story develops from each set of rushes he watches. The thing about Mary is that she’s incredibly strong and has already been through quite a lot. Before Matthew died, she lost a sister and went through the whole scandal with Pamuk and Richard Carlisle. She’s really been through the mill. And what’s wonderful to play is the whole British, stiff-upper-lip thing. You keep calm and carry on. She’s not weak. She’s a survivor. So she will come through it.”
Mary will eventually have some suitors (which you may have heard in the news already), but have no fear, she’s not going to be diving into a relationship right away. If they want to be with her, they are really going to have to work at it.
There’s no official premiere date for “Downton Abbey” season 4, but keep checking back: We’ll have it for you as soon as one is available. Meanwhile, check out some of what else is happening within the world of the show!
Photo: ITV