The Lady Magazine

12 September 2014

It is as much a harbinger of early autumn as plump blackberries, the departing swallows or the gradual ebbing of the day. Yes, it’s time to clear your diaries – Downton Abbey is back. The fi fth series, which begins on 21 September, promises a smorgasbord of surprises, as Richard Barber discovered when he met the cast. It’s now 1924 in the world’s favourite parallel universe and there will be blossoming relationships, dark secrets and colourful new characters, not least Richard E Grant as a fl irtatious art historian with more than the stately pile’s Piero della Francescas in his sights. After our appearance in series four, certainly keep an eye out for The Lady. We also have Diana, Princess of Wales’s brother, Charles Spencer, on being an earl, the modern aristocracy and the men who dared to execute King Charles I – and paid a gruesome price for their eff orts; Sir Roger Moore on marriage, dark chocolate and his disappearing hair, and the British couple whose life was turned topsy-turvy by fi ve stray puppies. There is an insight into how numbers can make you lucky; Thomas Blaikie on how sporting fi xtures transform loving parents into foul-mouthed gargoyles, and Nathan Outlaw on why we should all ensure that seafood is the star of our culinary show. And if your summer holidays already feel like a distant memory, don’t miss our autumn breaks special on page 47. Just don’t forget to record Downton. Very best wishes, Matt Warren, Editor