Shirley MacLaine hints at Downton Abbey 'sparring' with Maggie Smith (METRO)

The veteran Hollywood star, who has joined the cast as Lady Cora's mother Martha Levinson, admitted that viewers could look forward to some dignified rivalry between the two characters.

'We do a little sparring but it's more sophisticated and adult,' the 78-year-old said of the relationship between Martha and Violet, played by Smith.

'My character is really trying to explain to her that you really must grow up and out of this addiction to tradition because this is what got you into the world war.'

'Violet is a human being with complications and a past of some pain that Martha understands.'


Read more:  http://www.metro.co.uk/tv/907608-shirley-maclaine-hints-at-downton-abbey-sparring-with-maggie-smith