Michelle Dockery as Mary

Our favorite! Will she ever find peace?

Season 2: Ethel, played by Amy Nuttall

This new maid with attitude is getting rave reviews on Season 2!

Thomas: The Guy We Love to Hate

Thomas, First Footman played by Rob James-Collier.

Thomas thinks he is a fine man and that most of his fellow workers know nothing. An unsavory character, Thomas is always on the lookout to move up or out of Downton. His natural ally in the house is O'Brien. They are both entirely self-interested, but loyalty is probably beyond him.

Fan Favorite: Theo James as Mr Kemal Pamuk

Episode 3 of Season 1 stars this unlucky fellow, Theo James as Mr Kemal Pamuk, Turkish Embassy attaché. His appearance and fate mark the beginning of bad tidings at Downton Abbey.

The Staff at Downton Abbey

Just as intriguing and complicated as the Carwley family is the cast of characters that are responsible for running the household from below.

The Characters of Downtown Abbey

Here is a helpful graphic detailing the main characters in the award-winning series on ITV and PBS, Downton Abbey. A British television period drama series, produced by British media company Carnival Films for the ITV network, it was created and principally written by actor and writer Julian Fellowes. Series 2 is coming in 2011!

The Crawley Family of Downtown Abbey

Downtown Abbey Photos

It's 1912, and life in the Edwardian country house of Downton Abbey is idyllic and bustling for the Crawley family, aided by their cadre of servants. Robert, Earl of Grantham, his American heiress wife Cora, and their three daughters, along with Robert's mother Violet, have lived largely uncomplicated lives. But the sinking of the Titanic hits home in an unexpected and dramatic way — Lord Grantham's heir, James Crawley, and his son Patrick have perished. It's personally agonizing (momentarily) for daughter Mary who was supposed to marry Patrick. On a grander scale, suddenly all the predictable succession plans have gone terribly awry, and unheard of questions now loom large — Who will be the new heir to the earldom? And what will happen to this distinguished estate, now in jeopardy? Mary's grief is short lived as she sets her sights on another suitor, the Duke of Crowborough.

As the drama unfolds among the aristocrats of Downton Abbey, changes are happening amidst the servants as well. John Bates has arrived as a new valet for Robert, but he has a pronounced limp, potentially making him unfit to perform his duties. Also, Bates seems to have some previous link to Robert, and a murky past. And, someone else in the servant's quarters is darkly entangled with the fortunes of the family he serves.

Despite much angling and consternation, the course of action emerges — a new heir presumptive will soon arrive at Downton. As Matthew Crawley, the heir presumptive, and his mother Isobel arrive, the emotions of the onlookers range from anxiety to outright antagonism. But in crisis there may be opportunity, and Matthew is considered as a suitor for Mary. Yet, nothing is quite as it seems in the changing landscape and shifting fortunes of Downton Abbey.