‘Downton Abbey’ season 6 lands U.S. premiere date; also, spin-off rumors

PBS was present today at the Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour in Beverly Hills today, and with that came some great news when it comes to the sixth and final season of “Downton Abbey” … including news that the series may not be completely over just yet.

First things first, let us start with the biggest news: The new season of the show is going to premiere on Sunday, January 3, which means yet again that American viewers are going to have to wait months from when the show premieres in Britain on ITV. We have stated a few times over now what the ultimate reasoning for this is: In addition to some behind the scenes business issues, PBS does not feel any pressure to air the show sooner. It gets great ratings in the winter, and there is less competition for the most part from Sunday Night Football … even if it does still have to compete against a couple of games here and there.

Now, let’s talk about two other interesting notes that came out from the event today:

1. There will be a parade at the annual Tournament of Roses in Pasadena. We personally find this news somewhat exciting, mostly because it is not like just everyone is allowed to go in there and make a float.

2. There are rumors regarding a possible spin-off for the series, but nothing is close to official at the moment. It will take a little bit of time before we hear something more on that. Our main question here is that if Julian Fellowes is going to work on his mysterious NBC show “The Gilded Age” after this, is someone else going to have to write the spin-off?

If you want to read more news about the end of filming for “Downton Abbey” season 6, head over here! Also, be sure to sign up to book some other TV scoop on just about all we cover via our official CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: ITV.)