‘Downton Abbey’ season 3 finale spoilers: Three early teasers on the servants

Americans, brace yourselves: within the span of a few short days, you will no longer have to avoid spoilers for “Downton Abbey” season 4. The third season of the PBS drama is going to be coming to an end on Sunday night, and it is an episode fondly referred to in the United Kingdom as the Christmas special. Luckily (especially considering that we are sitting in February as we write this), the episode itself does not have anything to do with the holiday at all.

Rather, this episode is going to take place near the end of summer, and the characters are going to feel the need to take off for a holiday to Duneagle Castle, the estate in which Rose (who you met recently) calls home. We are going to quickly learn that not all is stable when it comes to her life there, and there are a number of reasons why she so frequently has tried to get away from this world over the years.

We’ll have three more teasers for you on Saturday about the episode, but here’s what we will share for now when it comes to the servants:

1. Mrs. Patmore is going to have a chance at love during the episode … but is it really going to be all that it seems? This is sadly a show full of opportunists, and the question is going to come up in a big way here.

2. With most of the servants staying at home while Robert, Cora, and the rest of the family is away, Mr. Carson is going to struggle with just how much freedom he wants to give his staff.

3. Finally, the Thomas / Jimmy storyline will resurface again this week after the painful situation led to Jimmy receiving a promotion, largely to keep quiet about what Thomas supposedly did to violate him earlier in the season. However, the moment in this episode may surprise you in many ways.

Want to read more about who on “Downton Abbey” chooses to not watch themselves on TV? If so, be sure to check out the story over at the link here.

Photo: PBS / ITV