Is This The Next “Brideshead”?
“Downton Abbey,” which has just finished a run on the BBC, is the most popular costume drama in the U.K. since “Brideshead Revisited.” You’d think this would make it a natural for broadcast on Masterpiece Classic. Well, unfortunately for PBS, the extreme popularity of the show was noticed by NBC, which has snapped up the rights for American airing. “Downton” threatens to make a Colin Firth-sized star of Brendan Coyle. I’d normally applaud that fact, since anyone named Brendan is usually all right with me. But it turns out that Brendan’s Christian name is David. He’ll have to be an honorary member of The Brendan Club.
