Downton Abbey- Season 2 airs in the UK Sept 18

Downton Abbey Season 2

OK now I'm trying not to get too excited about Downton Abbey starting again on Sunday because I DON'T LIVE IN ENGLAND!!!!!!  This is not for lack of trying to find a way to spend at least part of the year in a cottage in England (my totally unrealistic dream). But alas, I have to remain in Canada because this is where my house and my job are located. Dang! (Oops, I guess my family are here too!) So there is no ITV for me at present.

Matthew Crawley looks so sad going off to war

I have purposely avoided all the hype online up until now because I thought I would just be torturing myself with agonized waiting until it arrives on PBS in January. The internet has made it much harder for those of us lacking in patience. But then I had a thought...

Oooohh...officers!

Perhaps there are some really nice tech savvy people who actually live in the UK. And perhaps they might upload this to YouTube for those of us stuck on this side of the pond. And perhaps I might be able to watch some or all of these before they are yanked off by either ITV or PBS.

Lady Edith, Lady Sybil and Lady Mary Crawley

What do you think? Is it possible? Or should I just wait it out with all of the other Downton fans who will be seeing it in January, just when we need a bit of diversion from the long, dark, cold winter. Hmmmmm.......

Lavinia Swire fiancee of Matthew Crawley

But there will be all of these new characters. Like Lavinia Swire (gotta love that name) who snaps up Matthew Crawley after he and Mary part ways. Matthew has a new fiancee???? Mary must be green with jealousy don't you think?

Maid Ethel

And there is a new maid Ethel who might not be the most hard working of employees. Or the most discreet.

Vera Bates appears

Vera Bates appears just in time to really muck things up for her poor husband John Bates the valet and his love Anna, the head maid. Can't wait to see this storyline.

Good old Carson and William are back

It will be interesting to see how our favourite characters deal with the pressure of war. Parts of this will be hard to watch for anyone who has lost family members in any of the many conflicts of the past century. But I trust Julian Fellowes to handle the subject with sensitivity.

So whether I try to hunt this down online or whether I dutifully wait until I can legally watch it on PBS and on DVD in January, I have high hopes that the second season of Downton Abbey will equal or surpass the first.

And honestly, if I could just hear ONE of those great zingers from Dowager Countess Violet (Maggie Smith) I think I could probably make it to January. Maybe...

P.S. Perhaps one of the books below might help too!