‘Downton Abbey’ season 5 Christmas Special spoilers: Maggie Smith in the spotlight

The “Downton Abbey” Christmas Special is, as of this writing, just over 24 hours away. Isn’t that another reason to celebrate this time of year? (Warning: Spoilers ahead for American readers!)

You can rest assured that there is going to be quite a bit of content in this year’s season 5 special, which should be a relief for many of you, given how the season 4 special, despite its amazing costume work, was still somewhat of a bore when it comes to its story.

If nothing else, we know that this special is in particular going to be rather exciting if you are a fan of Violet, given that her love triangle of sorts is going to play up in a big way moving forward. According to the Mirror, Maggie Smith’s character is going to find herself in a somewhat-awkward position courtesy of Prince Kuragin’s wife arriving on the scene. While Violet hasn’t made any extremely grand overtures to the Prince, we now know a little more of her history with him, and why she can relate so much to the dilemma of Lady Mary.

In addition to the Violet story, there is at least going to be one notable departure this season … though not necessarily in a tragic way. When you have so many cast members on the show, it makes sense that there would be more to depart. Just don’t assume that it is going to be Violet, since we feel like without Smith, the show would lose a huge chunk of its spark.

Want to get some further updates right now when it comes to “Downton Abbey”? Head over here, since it may put your mind at ease about whether or not we are going to see any character deaths this season! Also, sign up now for some further TV scoop on all we cover courtesy of our official CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: ITV.)