Downton Abbey movie: soundtrack, UK release date, cast and trailer

21 August 2019, 17:48 | Updated: 21 August 2019, 17:51

The film adaptation of TV series Downton Abbey has been confirmed, and the new official trailer gives us a taste of what's to come from the Crawley family. Warning: contains spoilers from Season 6.

Since it first appeared on our screens in 2010, the country has been enamoured with the TV period drama Downton Abbey.

And now, a new film adaptation is confirmed to hit our screens later this year. It is expected to pick up where the most recent series (Season 6) of the TV show left off, and is already eagerly anticipated by fans.

From the cast and soundtrack to the release date, here’s everything you need to know about Downton Abbey the movie.

1. What’s the plot of the ‘Downton Abbey’ film?

   Downton Abbey, set in early 20th-century England, follows the lives of the aristocratic Crawley family and the staff who live and work in their country house.

   At the end of the sixth series, it’s the year 1926. Lady Edith Crawley has just got married on New Year’s Eve, and the Bates in the servants’ quarter have just welcomed their second child. Meanwhile, Mary is expecting her second child with her new husband, racing driver Henry Talbot.

   While any plot details are being kept tightly under wraps, the film’s timeline is expected to pick up a few months after the final TV episode.

   

   

2. Who has been cast in Downton Abbey the film?

   All our favourite characters have reunited for the film, including Lord and Lady Grantham (Hugh Bonneville and Elizabeth McGovern) Lady Mary Talbot (Michelle Dockery), Mr and Mrs Bates, (Brendan Coyle and Joanne Froggatt), Mr Carson (Jim Carter) and Lady Bagshaw (Imelda Staunton).

   Fans have expressed their delight that Maggie Smith will also be returning to the franchise to play the (now fairly ancient) Dowager Countess, despite her comments on The Graham Norton Show last year...

   “I'm glad it's over, I really am,” she said. “By the time we finished she must have been about 110. It couldn't go on and on, it just didn't make sense.”

   

   

3. Who will compose the soundtrack for Downton Abbey?

   In the official trailer we hear snippets from the familiar theme tune of Downton Abbey, written by Scottish composer, John Lunn, accompanied by shots of the Crawley family’s majestic English country house.

   The two-time Emmy Award winner has confirmed that the music, which we now associate with the aristocratic family and their estate of Downton Abbey, will once again take a central role in the story.

   The original score has been composed in a similar type to the music from the series – heavily orchestrated, with upbeat jazz arrangements and lavish waltzes reflecting popular styles from the 1920s.

   Speaking about the music, Lunn said: “I was delighted to be approached to create the feature length film score to a series which has had a huge impact on audiences and fans all over the world.

   “At first it was like discovering a long-lost friend, but gradually I realised that we’d never really been apart; by the end it was just such a joy to revisit this material and have the opportunity to take it to a whole new level.”

   The soundtrack will be released by Decca Records/Decca Gold on 13 September 2019.

4. What is the release date for Downton Abbey the movie?

   The film will be released in UK cinemas on 13 September, with the US release date confirmed for 20 September 2019.

   We look forward to seeing what the Crawley family get up to next...

Downton Abbey Soundtrack: Full Tracklist

1. A Royal Command
2. Pillar of the Establishment
3. Gleam and Sparkle        
4. God Is a Monarchist      
5. Two Households
6. Incident at A Parade
7. Sabotage
8. Maud
9. Honour Restored
10. Never Seen Anything Like It       
11. Not Entirely a Bad Night
12. May I?
13. Taking Leave
14. Resolution        
15. You Are the Best of Me
16. Sunset Waltz
17. One Hundred Years of Downton