‘Downton Abbey’ season 4 spoilers: Joanne Froggatt on secrets and surprises

“Downton Abbey” season 4 is a vault, and if you are to take a certain metaphor made by series star Joanne Froggatt to heart, then the contents of this said vault are so valuable, opening them would basically cause whoever found them to be richer than Bill Gates. There are few series out there (save for maybe “Mad Men”) that manage to keep so much of their content hidden behind a heavy lock and key, and for good reason. Just look at how tight the series held back to keep the shocks of Matthew and Sybil’s deaths a secret: Had you known in advance, seeing the deaths would produce more of a “meh” reaction.

So how do you say something interesting while still saying nothing at all? Based on her new comments in an interview with Glamour, it feels almost as though Joanne Froggatt has figured this out:

“It’s so difficult, because my lips are sealed… It’s more than my life is worth … But I can say it’s a real rollercoaster again. I think the scripts have really surpassed themselves again this year. I think Julian (Fellowes) has done an amazing job yet again at ringing the changes and bringing in changes yet again… There are quite a few shocks for series four, so, yeah, there’s a lot of exciting things to happen.”

The last we saw of Froggatt’s Anna, she and Bates were starting to settle in to some sort of happy life following his release from prison. But can these two have a happy existence forever? This is what riddles us with anxiety, given that this is a drama series, and it is not particularly interesting to see people ride off into the sunset. We’re sure that eventually, what Bates did to get out of prison will come back into play, or they will consider trying to start a family of their own.

The secrets surrounding “Downton Abbey” season 4 will be revealed in a few months for viewers in the United Kingdom, and for everyone else, at least you have this apology-of-sorts from Dan Stevens to read.

Photo: ITV