This sends a frisson through the company. Bates stands.
ANNA: Shall I come with you?
He nods and they leave together. Carson is about to go, but –
THOMAS: Lady Mary was looking for you.
CARSON: When was this?
THOMAS: When she got back from her outing.
CARSON: And were you going to keep it a secret all day?
He walks out. The others enjoy this. O’Brien winks at Thomas.
O’BRIEN: I’m going to fetch me button box.
25 INT. DRAWING ROOM. DOWNTON. DAY.
Major Gordon is lying on his bed, reading. Edith comes in.
EDITH: Any letters to post?
Gordon shakes his head, but before she turns away…
GORDON: Look, I know I’ve changed and not for the better, but even so… Do you really still not recognise me?
EDITH: I know. Why am I being so silly?
GORDON: It’s funny, isn’t it? I came here all the time when I was growing up.
EDITH: You were here? At Downton? You’re not saying you’re…
GORDON: Patrick. Yes, I am. That’s exactly what I’m saying. I’ve just been hoping you’d realise, without my having to spell it out.
EDITH: But Patrick’s…
GORDON: Dead? Drowned on the Titanic? Of course, this must be very hard for you…
END OF ACT TWO
ACT THREE
26 INT. CARSON’S PANTRY. DOWNTON. DAY.
Bates is on the telephone, with Anna listening.
BATES: No, I’m not saying it’s a lie. But it wasn’t a payment… Well, I suppose it was, but I never thought — Collusion…? But how long can they hold it up…? That’s ridiculous! No, I’m sorry. Of course I’m not saying it’s your fault. It’s mine, it’s all mine… Yes… Thank you. Goodbye.
He puts back the receiver.
BATES (CONT’D): She’s only gone and told the judge that I paid her to agree to a divorce.
ANNA: I suppose you did, didn’t you?
BATES: Yes, I bloody well did!
ANNA: So what does it mean?
BATES: Because we withheld it from the Court, it means the judge can withdraw the Decree Nisi… It means I’m not divorced after all. And above all, it means I am a stupid, stupid, stupid man!
ANNA: This won’t change a thing. We are going to be together, whether she wants it or not. If we have to leave here, if we have to leave the country, we are going to be together.*
The camera drops back to find O’Brien listening outside.
27 INT. DRAWING ROOM. DOWNTON. DAY.
Edith and Major Gordon are still talking.
GORDON: I was on the Titanic. That much is true. But I was pulled out of the water by Fifth Officer Lowe, the only one of them to come back — at least that’s what they said later. When I properly came round, they misidentified me as Canadian and shipped me up to Montreal.
Edith is close enough now to sit on the bed. She is in shock.
EDITH: I don’t understand. Why didn’t you just tell them who you were?
GORDON: Because I couldn’t remember. I don’t know if it was the blow to the head or the shock or the cold, but I had no memory. It was wiped blank. As far as I knew I was Canadian.
EDITH: So, what happened?
GORDON: Well, I had no reason to go back to England so, in the end, I took my name from a gin bottle and got a job in a bank. Then, in 1914, I joined Princess Pat’s Infantry.*
EDITH: And what changed?
GORDON: I was caught in a big explosion at Passchendaele. When I woke up, it all came back. Suddenly I knew who I was. I began to call myself Patrick again.
EDITH: Why not your whole name? And why didn’t you send a message at once?
GORDON: I nearly did. And then I heard that Downton was an officers’ convalescent home. I thought that if I came here and you knew me, the hard part would be over.
EDITH: But we didn’t know you.
GORDON: Precisely.
EDITH: I must talk to Papa. We’ve Matthew, the new heir, to think about.
GORDON: Ah. The new heir. Yes. This will be very difficult for him, of course.
EDITH: It must be so hard for you, what with Mary getting married…
GORDON: Did I love her very much?
EDITH: Well, I’m the wrong person to ask.
GORDON: Because you were the one who really loved me, you mean?
EDITH: I never thought Patrick knew.
GORDON: Well, he did… I do.
Edith stares at him. She is totally convinced.*
* I had to ask Fiona Shackleton about this. She’s a very senior divorce lawyer, who’s a friend of ours, and is, indeed, in the Lords with me. I told her that everything about the divorce was agreed, and Bates has got the Decree Nisi, so how could I make it go wrong? Fiona was extremely helpful, and got a second opinion as to how a divorce could be spoilt, and how and why a judge would withdraw it under the rules of those days. One answer was if there was any reason for the judge to suspect collusion. That is, if money had been paid from one divorcing party to the other, and it was enough for the judge to withdraw the Decree Nisi and cancel the Decree Absolute. We wanted Bates to think his divorce was unstoppable, that all he had to do was to wait, but in fact it could still be stopped. This story is what Fiona and her friend came up with.
* Princess Patricia of Connaught was a daughter of the Duke of Connaught, a younger son of Queen Victoria. Her sister married the Crown Prince of Sweden, and Patricia was the first choice of King Alfonso of Spain, so she could have been a queen, but she was quite an independent soul and instead fell in love with the younger son of the Earl of Dalhousie. She insisted on marrying him, and the deal was that she should exchange her royal rank for that of a duke’s daughter. So she ceased to be Her Royal Highness Princess Patricia of Connaught and became first Lady Patricia Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and then, after her marriage, Lady Patricia Ramsay. Her original name only survives in this Canadian troop, Princess Patricia’s Light Infantry.
I am told that her arrangement was the model for the offer made to Princess Margaret. You often see in the papers that the Princess was forbidden to marry Group Captain Townsend, but I don’t believe this is necessarily so. I may be wrong, but I think, instead of being forbidden, she was told that, if she married him, she would have to surrender her royal rank and become Lady Margaret Townsend. For whatever reason, guided, I’m sure, by her sense of duty to the Crown, she did not consider this acceptable.
* Gordon’s account of the Titanic sinking is all true. Fifth Officer Lowe was the only officer to go back, but he miscalculated and waited too long. The famous Molly Brown got into a terrific fight with the seaman in charge of her boat, because he wouldn’t go back, and the women couldn’t make him. Lowe was a brave man, but in order for his rescue mission to make sense he had to empty one boat, and that took time. The trouble was they were terrified of being swamped, of 1,500 people trying to get on board. As a result, there were only about six survivors pulled out of the water, and of those, one died at once.
Funnily enough, by this time I had been asked to write Titanic for ITV, so I had become a Titanic expert. It is an extraordinary story, actually, an extraordinary, extraordinary story. It sounds rather an odd thing to say, but it is also a very heartening one, because they were so unbelievably brave. The modern historian is usually a miserabilist and is only happy when reporting how badly everyone behaved, but if he tries this with the Titanic he will be disappointed. I’m not saying nobody behaved badly, but very few did. And in all three classes, there were so many examples of staggering courage.
28 EXT. DOWNTON. DAY.
Mary is wheeling Matthew’s chair along.
MARY: It’s big. The staircase is prettier than the one here, but mainly it’s just big.
MATTHEW: Can we stop? I’d much rather see your face when we talk.
They do. She sits on a bench facing him.
MATTHEW (CONT’D): So will he buy it?
&nbs
p; MARY: Probably. He says he wants to steal Carson to come and run it for us.
MATTHEW: I don’t envy you telling your Papa.
MARY: Suppose Carson won’t do it?
MATTHEW: Since he would open his veins for you, I don’t think there’s much doubt.
She is amused by this. She looks at him steadily.
MARY: I don’t have to marry him, you know.
MATTHEW: Yes, you do. If I thought for a moment that I was an argument against your marriage, I should jump into the nearest river.
MARY: And how would you manage that without my help?
MATTHEW: Well, I’d get you to push me in.
Which makes them both laugh. Sort of.
MATTHEW (CONT’D): Seriously, I can only relax because I know that you have a real life coming. If I ever felt I was putting that in jeopardy, I’d go away and never see you again.
MARY: You don’t mean that.
MATTHEW: But I do. I am the cat that walks by himself and all places are alike to me. I have nothing to give and nothing to share. And if you were not engaged to be married, I wouldn’t let you anywhere near me.
29 INT. SMALL LIBRARY. DOWNTON. DAY.
Carlisle is watching Mary and Matthew, who are still talking. This time Cora is the only other person in the room.
CARLISLE: You’d think he was in Mary’s sole charge.
CORA: They do spend a lot of time together, it’s true.
CARLISLE: I worry it’ll mean a big adjustment for him. When we marry.
CORA: I don’t believe Matthew has any desire to stop her marrying, Richard. Quite the contrary.
CARLISLE: Maybe. But is she as convinced as he is that they have no future?
CORA: What are you saying?
CARLISLE: I suppose I’m asking whether you want Mary to have children. Because, if you do, isn’t it time for Lavinia Swire to come back into his life?*
* I always like to write those scenes, when the topic of conversation isn’t really what they’re talking about. And here, what they’re really discussing is whether or not Mary will stay in love with Matthew, even though Carlisle can offer her what Matthew never can, i.e. children. That’s the issue. So they decide to involve Lavinia to get things back on track. Cora’s quite cynical in supporting this plan, because she feels her daughter will be happier if she does not contract a childless marriage with a man in a wheelchair. That seems believable. I don’t think it makes her heartless. But the fact is, mothers are tough when it comes to protecting their children’s future. She doesn’t want her daughter to sacrifice her life. That doesn’t make her a bad person, to me.
30 EXT. STABLEYARD. DOWNTON. DAY.
Sybil walks over to where Branson is working under a car.
SYBIL (V.O.): I wish I knew how an engine worked.
He pulls himself out. His shirt is open at the neck and he is marked with oil. He looks rough and strong as he stands.
BRANSON: I can teach you if you like.
SYBIL: That’s Edith’s territory.
BRANSON: I thought you were avoiding me.
SYBIL: Of course not.
BRANSON: But you haven’t come up with an answer yet, have you?
SYBIL: Not yet, I’m afraid. I know you want to play your part in Ireland’s troubles and I respect that, but I just can’t think about it all until the war is over. It won’t be long now, so will you wait?
BRANSON: I’d wait forever.
SYBIL: I’m not asking for forever. Just a few more weeks.
31 EXT. KITCHEN COURTYARD. DOWNTON. EVE.
O’Brien is having a smoke when Thomas appears.
O’BRIEN: You look very purposeful.
THOMAS: I am. You know, old Ma Patmore’s not as mad as I thought.
O’BRIEN: Why do you say that?
THOMAS: I’ve made some enquiries and she’s right. There’s a big demand for rationed food if I can find it.
O’BRIEN: And can you?
THOMAS: Maybe. I’ve been given a name… I’ll have to come up with the money, though. They’re only interested in selling in bulk.
O’BRIEN: And can you find the money?
THOMAS: I think so. I’ve a bit put by. God knows I’ve worked long enough for it. And I could borrow some.
O’BRIEN: It’s a risk, though, isn’t it?
THOMAS: You’ve got to speculate to accumulate. Hadn’t you heard?
O’BRIEN: No. But I know the one about neither a borrower nor a lender be.
32 INT. ROBERT’S DRESSING ROOM. DOWNTON. NIGHT.
Robert is putting on a dinner jacket and a black tie.
ROBERT: What do you think? All the chaps are wearing them in London. Only for informal evenings, of course.
BATES: I’m not sure you’ll get much use out of it when the war’s over.
ROBERT: Maybe not. But I can wear it when her ladyship and I are on our own.*
But when he looks at his valet, Bates is staring into nothing.
ROBERT (CONT’D): You’re very preoccupied tonight.
There is a swift knock and Edith appears.
EDITH: Papa, can I have a word?
She looks at Bates, who picks up the day’s linen and goes.
ROBERT: Now? What is it?
EDITH: I think you’d better sit down.
* The dinner jacket is another minor subplot. When it came in, it was to allow men to be completely informal in the evening, and Violet detests it. We’ve broken our own rules once or twice – not deliberately, really, but because there’s always so much going on – but what we try to do is to put all the men into white tie when Violet is coming for dinner. But when she’s not, and it’s not a dinner party, then it’s black tie, certainly by the time the series has reached the early Twenties. Of course, once or twice the men wear black tie in front of Violet for a reason, because a guest hasn’t brought his white tie, or whatever, and Violet hates it.
There is that wonderful quote, when Duff Cooper was talking to his brother-in-law, the Duke of Rutland, who was a very formal character. He said, ‘Don’t you ever wear black tie?’ And the Duke thought for a moment. ‘Maybe,’ he said. ‘If I’m dining alone with the Duchess in her bedroom.’ We use black tie to show that the world is changing and becoming a more modern place.
33 INT. DINING ROOM. DOWNTON. NIGHT.
Carson is checking when Mary, dressed for dinner, comes in.
MARY: I knew you’d be in here. Making last-minute adjustments.
CARSON: Never leave anything to chance, m’lady. That’s my motto.
MARY: Mine too, really. Sometimes I wish it wasn’t… I gather Sir Richard’s asked you about coming with us, when we’re married.
CARSON: I need to hear what you think.
MARY: It’s a terrific idea. If anyone can keep me out of trouble, it’s you.
CARSON: What about his lordship?
MARY: Of course he’ll kill me, but I’m sure he’ll understand.
CARSON: Will you be poaching anyone else?
MARY: I’d love to take Anna, but she won’t leave Bates, and Mrs Hughes’d never come, so I think it’s just you.
CARSON: Well, I’ll give you my answer when you’ve spoken to his lordship. It’ll be a huge wrench for me to leave Downton.
MARY: But you’ll say yes?
CARSON: After you’ve spoken to his lordship.
34 INT. DRAWING ROOM. DOWNTON. NIGHT.
There are only two men in here now. They are in their beds. Gordon looks up as Robert approaches. He speaks softly.
ROBERT: Major Gordon, Edith has given me an account of your conversation.
GORDON: She said she would.
ROBERT: I wish you’d spoken to me first. Obviously, I need time to consider what you’ve said.
GORDON: Well, I can offer little proof, except that I know things only the real Patrick would know. I was never ‘finger printed’ or anything.
ROBERT: Presumably you understand that people would be seriously affected should your story be true.
GORDON
: You mean Cousin Matthew.
ROBERT: It would be very hard on Matthew.
GORDON: Of course it would, but Robert —
He has taken an envelope. Robert flinches at the familiarity.
GORDON (CONT’D): I mean Lord Grantham, if you’d prefer it.
ROBERT: I would. Until we know more.
GORDON: When I was in hospital I had my story written down, so you can have it checked, as far as that’s possible.
ROBERT: Thank you. I’ll send it to my lawyers in London, and I’ll break the news to the family tomorrow.
Gordon makes a gesture, sealing his lips by holding up his index finger, as if telling a child to ‘Sssh!’ Robert stares.
ROBERT (CONT’D): Where did you learn to do that?
GORDON: Do what?
ROBERT: Never mind.
He turns away and walks towards the door.
GORDON: Am I really a stranger? Do you not recognise me at all? It feels very odd to be talking so formally.
ROBERT: The whole situation is certainly odd. That I freely admit.*
* I wanted it to be unclear as to whether Gordon was telling the truth or not. I think he probably isn’t, but he must have known Patrick to pick up his mannerisms, like the little thing that he does with his finger. This is why we establish that he may have worked with Patrick. Hopefully, all this just plants a slight doubt, allowing Robert to walk into the room assuming he’s a fraud, but by the time he leaves his position in the whole matter has slightly changed.
35 EXT. DOWER HOUSE. DAY.
A new day. Isobel is with Violet.
VIOLET: The war may be at an end, but the upheaval is only beginning.
ISOBEL: Oh, how right you are. That is why Downton Abbey still has such an important role to play.
VIOLET: Dear me, there’s so much to be done. When you think of all the children laid up with disease —
ISOBEL: But they’re making such advances now, aren’t they? Now, could we talk about the lecture programme for Downton?
VIOLET: If we must, we must. If only I wasn’t haunted by those women whose jobs will be snatched from them when the boys come home.
ISOBEL: But we have to find work for our heroes, don’t we? That must be our priority, however hard that might sound.
VIOLET: As you say… And what about those wretched refugees? What will become of them?
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