I came across this blog post in my Twitter feed. I believe it was from the Twitter handle for Mr. Bates Legal Team, which is a fan handle for Downton Abbey.
It’s safe to say at this point that Downton Abbey has definitely focused more on the “Upstairs” than the “Downstairs.” And with logical reason. No one wants to know what a cruddy job the “below stairs” really had. That would be too much like real life.
I think that people underestimate how much work went into daily living in the past- especially if you weren’t blessed with wealth and privilege.
A PBS Exploration 