Downton Abbey:'Hotel' star Penelope Wilton resides at 'Downton Abbey' By Susan Wloszczyna, USA TODAY

Penelope Wilton plays the killjoy Jean in 'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.' "She is a disappointed woman," Wilton says. "I find Jean finds herself difficult, not just other people. She is a mass of insecurities." Ishika Mohan, Fox Searchlight Pictures


NEW YORK – These days, meeting one of the principal players of the British TV sensation Downton Abbey almost feels like encountering one of the Beatles back in their '60s heyday. Instead of outbreaks of twisting and shouting by fans, however, the actors are more prone to be prodded for precious details of future episodes.


Alas, all are sworn to secrecy. That includes Penelope Wilton, 65, whose chic haircut and figure-flattering garb show only a slight hint of Isobel Crawley, her dowdy do-gooder on the glorified soap opera that follows the travails of an upper-crusty English family and its serving staff amid early 20th-century societal upheavals.

But Wilton's feathery vocal inflections immediately give her away as the mother of Matthew, the estate's presumptive heir. Her middle-class matron is a regular source of consternation for Maggie Smith, whose priceless putdowns as the Dowager Countess account for much of the series' popularity.


"We're so pleased we are doing well here," says Wilton. Not that she hasn't had a career full of triumphs already, from conquering Shakespeare, Shaw and Beckett onstage to memorable roles as a middle-age pinup in Calendar Girls, a zombie victim in Shaun of the Dead and a disapproving mum in Woody Allen's Match Point. But global fame is a different game altogether.

Today, she's in town to promote Friday's opening of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, a picturesque feel-good ensemble piece about seven British seniors — including seasoned stalwarts Smith (she and Wilton are quite chummy in real life), Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson and Bill Nighy—who pull up stakes to spend their retirement years in India. In a savvy move, promos for the film were shown on PBS when Downton's second season aired earlier this year, taking advantage of Wilton and Smith's participation in both.



READ MORE:  http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/story/2012-05-03/penelope-wilton-marigold-hotel-downton-abbey/54828352/1