Downton Abbey stars' pets are in the doghouse | Showbiz | News ...

Its owners, the Earl and Countess of Carnarvon, put their foot down when the number of pets running free in the grounds became unmanageable.

Lady Carnarvon, 49, found that her two labradors and three spaniels were being upset by the large number of other dogs that had invaded their ?150million country mansion in Hampshire.

A show source said: ?As the cast spend so much time filming at Highclere Castle, a lot of them bring their dogs with them. Lady Carnarvon imposed a ban because she doesn?t like the dogs going in certain areas in case they cause a mess.

?One of her own labradors gets jealous when rival dogs are on set, which is believed to be another reason.?

However, some of the actors have admitted breaking the new rule.

Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, 69, who plays Downton?s only real-life character, the Australian soprano Dame Nellie Melba, confessed: ?I took my two dogs along and Lady Carnarvon didn?t want those anywhere near the place, but anyway I did.?

Ed Speleers, 25, who plays downstairs footman Jimmy Kent, added: ?I?ve got a border collie who ran off and up to the part of the house you?re not allowed to go to. I had to run after him and pick him up by the scruff of the neck because he was getting mud everywhere.?

The fourth series, set in the Twenties and due to return to our screens next month, will open with the Crawley family still in mourning six months after the shock death of Matthew Crawley, the heir to the estate, in a car accident.

Lord Anthony Gillingham, played by Tom Cullen, will join the cast as a potential love interest for the recently widowed Lady Mary, with Charles Blake, played by Julian Ovenden, another potential suitor.

The servants of the Crawley family will find themselves whisked towards modernity with the introduction of labour-saving kitchen equipment.

Kitchen maid Daisy Mason, played by Sophie McShera, will be seen using an electric whisk for the first time, as new-fangled gadgets reach the Abbey.

Rising star McShera, 28, will join Lily James, 24, who portrays Lady Rose in Downton, in a new Disney version of Cinderella directed by Sir Kenneth Branagh.

A fifth series of Downton, which recently became Britain?s most successful television export with a global audience of more than 120 million, has already been commissioned.

Source: http://www.express.co.uk/news/showbiz/422903/Downton-Abbey-stars-pets-are-in-the-doghouse

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