Downton Abbey series 5: Will the Grantham's dog last, even if she's called Isis? (spoiler alert kind of )

INDEPENDENT
MATTHEW BELL , ELLEN E JONES
Sunday 26 October 2014

The question of how to deal with an embarrassing Labrador has hounded English families for decades.

But even by the wacky standards of Downton Abbey, killing it off seems a little extreme. Tonight’s episode of ITV’s period soap opera appears to tackle a problem that has been getting harder to ignore. Lord Grantham’s dog is called Isis. This is awkward because it shares a name with the terrorist movement sweeping the Middle East. With the jihadists showing little sign of giving up, one of them had to go, so – spoiler alert – Julian Fellowes and his script-writers have given the dog the heave-ho.

Or so it would seem. About 20 minutes into tonight’s episode, Lord and Lady Grantham interrupt discussions on some building work to observe that Isis is looking “terribly listless”. The golden Labrador does, indeed, look a little peaky, splayed out on the ground like a spatchcock chicken. “I wonder if she’s picked up a germ,” observes Lady Mary, in doubtful 1920s speak. “Maybe she’s eaten a squirrel.” Other Moriarty-style observations include her looking “quite fat”, and “perhaps she’s pregnant?”.

Seasoned viewers of Downton – we are now in series five – will know that even the most trifling of conversations are loaded with meaning. So this dialogue – of a banality that is quite normal for The Archers, less so for Downton – must point to some terrible undoing of the dog later in the series. Which would conveniently tackle the PR problem that has plagued this series. When viewers first noticed the connection last month, they took to Twitter, pointing it out as #awkward.

The dog’s possible demise should not come as a complete surprise. The fact that Isis made her debut in the first Downton episode set in 1912 as an adult, and is still with the family in 1924, puts her at the upper end of Labrador life expectancy, canine experts say.

A spokesman for ITV insists it is pure coincidence, and that they got there first. “Isis has been the Crawleys’ family pet since series two (2011) and was named after the Egyptian goddess,” she says. “At the time the dog was named, and up to and including the majority of filming of series five, no one was using that acronym to describe a terror group. It is an unfortunate coincidence.”

Who knew?

READ MORE HERE: http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/downton-abbey-can-a-lords-best-friend-last-for-evereven-if-shes-called-isis-9818682.html

‘Downton Abbey’ season 4 notes: Allen Leech, Tom Cullen, and a dog

CARTER

3 August, 2013

Allen’s feud with the dog – It has been a while since we have done a formal “Downton Abbey” notes article, but why not start off with something that we simply find hilarious? Sometimes, watching a Twitter feud can be ridiculously entertaining, especially when things start to really go haywire and you can begin to compare it to a verbal beatdown.

This one, mind you, is a little bit unfair … mostly because of the targets that we are referring to here is a dog, and the one made famous on “Downton Abbey,” no less. Allen Leech has been having quite a bit of fun with this four-legged friend as of late, giving us viewers a chance to feel as close to the series as possible without really spoiling much of anything in the process. Not only did he share this photo on his Twitter account, but he included the following caption to go along with it:

“Now this is a step too far. That is MY top hat… #isis #diva gloves and hats are off!”

READ MORE HERE: http://cartermatt.com/76927/downton-abbey-season-4-notes-allen-leech-tom-cullen-and-a-dog/

Another new pic from Downton Abbey, Season 4!

‘Downton Abbey’ season 4: Some fun with Allen Leech (and a dog), BY MATT CARTER

ISIS, arriving at the set

While Allen Leech was not one of the “Downton Abbey” stars nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award on Thursday, the actor has still had a little bit of fun this week courtesy of sharing what has to be one of the more-entertaining photos that we have seen from the show’s season 4 set.

“Isis is such a diva! INSISTS on wearing a hat in EVERY scene! And as for adding her own lines… DON’T get me started”

There is something first of all about this image that we personally find to be perfect for a meme, and strangely, Isis’ expression almost feels rather British like she could be a direct descendant of Robert himself. We’re mostly just thrilled to see that there even a great relationship on set between the actors and the animals, and that cannot always be an easy thing multiple scenes in, where there may just be a certain philosophy and desire at that point to just try to get the work done rather than having to stress about getting a dog to do what they are asked.

READ MORE AT: http://cartermatt.com/74064/downton-abbey-season-4-some-fun-with-allen-leech-and-a-dog/