Downton Abbey

[harrietthespook]

Ladies....as we were?

I think I'd take the new Countess of Grantham and move into the dower house. No massive pile would be worth that fight!

But what about the shoehorn, eh? That might be used by slutmaid to despatch Lord G, unless JF is bound by the super injunction, of course.

I thought you were going to say something else there BOF! I was all ready to start tutting over the turns from which MNer gets the lovely Matthew, to parallels in classic literature and then back to the mud :o

The shoehorn. I can't believe no one has mentioned it yet.

Deadly props: soap, shoehorn....whatever next?!

Oh does Capn' Crawley's nob get blown off?

LAWKS A MERCY!!!
Poor Mary where whilt she turn for her deep and baser needs to be met?
I think if Matthew gets her one of machines then Mary will be fine. Put it in the billiard room behind an Arrass is all, marvellous. Lady Edith will need to use it very often particularly if she has unwarranted Thoughts. Sybil has the dirty filthy basta'd communist chauffer to get all mucky with she won't need it.

I can feel your enthusiasm through the screen mrZ blimey, you've given it plenty of thought.
I had wondered if the shoe horn (which was long with a nice curly shaft) was going to have some great significance.
What a creepy old stand in valet was.

has anyone else noticed capn' crawley's voice it's absolutely GORGEOUS.
Lady Mary won't deserve him, nobless or not. Noblesse, that's a word isn't it?

Oooh no, I can't think of anyone with a gorgeous voice in that.

If you think cousin Matthew's voice is gorg you'd better listen to this sometime in the next six hours:

www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b014x4ht.

Comin' at you from Twitter sources.

Nobless Oblige could be the name for the sex machine.

psychic I think Slut Maid was an actual post that you worked your way up to from Lady of the House Maid via Scullery Skivvy/Tweenie.

Obviously it was a high-risk strategy but we should salute those early female entrepreneurs.

DH has a shoehorn made of actual horn. Reindeer, I think, or possibly elk.

It's very long and could do someone a serious mischief.

"Oh does Capn' Crawley's nob get blown off?"

Mary should catch it like a bridal bouquet made of those fleshy flower displays you see in Soho restaurants.

I think everyone should say what they reckon their 'downstairs' job would have been, back in the day.

I'm definitely a Tweenie.

leBOF That is v funny!

What's a tweenie?

I first heard the word in Jessica Mitford's book Hons and Rebels. A poster below mentioned it too.

Accd to t'internet: "tweenie" or "in between" maid -bottom rung as far as the household staff went in grand old English homes. I think these poor girls came in and did various things that the older more senior staff found tiresome. Like brushing out fires etc.

Plan to dig out hons and rebs tonight.

Our arrangements. Americans would call the floor on which we lived the second floor, but here in Britain it is called the ?first? floor. We shared a common room, although I must say, the peculiar needs of my friend occupied the major part of the room..... Our rent included the services of a tweenie who dusted, cleaned, made the beds and kept the fires clear. These girls seemed to come and go about once a year and tended to be from fourteen to sixteen years of age. I presume they went on to work at grander residences when they left our employ.

that's a quote btw. Think my research is actually done on this point.

Well I have to hope for Slut Maid then. :o I could have an illegitimate child and extort a lot of money from the family, then hop ship for America or similar and say I was a grieving widow.

You'd have to pay it to me anyway. Because I'll have seen your goings on as I'm cleaning out the grates and will threaten to TELL.

I would definitely have been Tweenie status but I wouldn't have held the job down for long because I'm not good at getting up early and am a bit lippy.

I'd have been ideal transportation fodder about 150 years before and the Australian sun would have played havoc with my freckles.

Don't know about the 19-teens. I used to be a barmaid in my early 20s but suspect I was a bit too argumentative for them days.

Harriet you'll rue the day!

I am in turns howling laughing and befuddled by this thread. Having to keep explaining it to Mr Suma

the shoehorn. Intruiging. That was Molecom's wasnt it, 'special' gift for Chubby Earl G to put on his own shoes. Then MasterBates grabbed it.

Slutmaid? the tweenies? confused.

...and that film - - - - *** words fail me. i adore Sheridan Smith.