Downton Abbey movie: Dame Maggie Smith, 84, keeps a low profile as she makes late arrival at star-studded premiere in London

By SEAN O'GRADY, SENIOR SHOWBUSINESS REPORTER

Published: | Updated:

She is one of Britain's best-loved actresses with a career spanning six decades.

And Dame Maggie Smith kept a low-profile as she arrived at the premiere of the feature film adaptation of Downton Abbey in Leicester Square on Monday. 

The actress, 84, donned a red jacket for the event which she paired with a black top and matching trousers.

Event: Dame Maggie Smith, 84, kept a low-profile as she arrived at the premiere of the feature film adaptation of Downton Abbey in Leicester Square on Monday

Event: Dame Maggie Smith, 84, kept a low-profile as she arrived at the premiere of the feature film adaptation of Downton Abbey in Leicester Square on Monday

Smiling to the hundreds of fans who attended the premiere, Maggie quickly made her way down the red carpet toward the screening.

The actress reprised her role as Violet Crawley, The Dowager Countess of Grantham in the film.

Talk of a film adaptation of Downton Abbey began in April 2016 while producers confirmed a feature-length movie would be made in July 2018.

Hugh Bonneville, who plays Robert Crawley, previously teased the possibility of a second movie being made in the future, as he discussed the TV show's hotly-anticipated feature-length adaptation in an interview with The Mirror.

Premiere: The actress donned a red jacket for the event which she paired with a black top and matching trousers

Premiere: The actress donned a red jacket for the event which she paired with a black top and matching trousers 

Character: Maggie reprised her role as Violet Crawley, The Dowager Countess of Grantham in the film

Character: Maggie reprised her role as Violet Crawley, The Dowager Countess of Grantham in the film

The actor seemed very keen to return to the franchise, as he admitted: 'When we started filming, I thought this is going to be a nice full stop, but there is such an appetite for it, I can see it carrying on. I'd never say never!'

Hugh added that stepping out on the film set wasn't that different to making the beloved British TV show, as it just felt like 'a bigger table.'

And of returning to the characters in a feature-length setting, he said: 'Here we all were eight years later. As we looked around the room there were grins of "can you believe we're here again"!'

The movie follows the characters from the series as they try to keep afloat following the announcement of a royal visit by King George V and Queen Mary, who will be played by newcomers Simon Jones and Geraldine James.

The TV series, which aired on ITV from September 2010 until Christmas Day 2015, followed the lives of the aristocratic household during the early 20th century.

Movie: Talk of a film adaptation of Downton Abbey began in April 2016 while producers confirmed a feature-length movie would be made in July 2018

Movie: Talk of a film adaptation of Downton Abbey began in April 2016 while producers confirmed a feature-length movie would be made in July 2018

Maggie SmithDownton Abbey

Most watched News videos

Comments 30

Share what you think

  View all

The comments below have not been moderated.

  View all

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

We are no longer accepting comments on this article.