Cliff Notes – Every episode of ‘the best period drama ever made’ now streaming on ITVX

Complete Series Available: ITVX has added every episode of Downton Abbey, a critically acclaimed period drama, to its platform as of November 1.
Cultural Impact: The series, created by Julian Fellowes, explores the lives of the Crawley family and their servants against the backdrop of significant historical events, including the Titanic sinking and World War I.
Enduring Popularity: Despite concluding in 2015, Downton Abbey continues to attract new fans, evidenced by enthusiastic reviews praising its character development and storytelling.

Every episode of ‘the best period drama ever made’ now streaming on ITVX

The show attracted a variety of guest stars, including Charlie Cox (Picture: ITV)

Tired of the rat race and need an escape from your hectic modern life? If so, ITVX has got you covered.

The streaming service has just added every single episode of what is arguably the best period drama ever made.

We’re talking about the wildly popular Downton Abbey, which was added to the channel on November 1.

Created and co-written by Julian Fellowes, the series followed the upper-class Crawley family and their working-class servants during the early 20th century, when life in England was undergoing dramatic change.

How dramatic are we talking?

Well, the first season alone deals with the sinking of the Titanic and the outbreak of a little thing called World War I.

There are more stars in Downton than in the night’s sky (Picture: PA)

So yeah, the show doesn’t pull its punches when it comes to drama, but the historic setting is just table dressing.

What really made Downton so beloved was seeing how these events impacted the incredible cast of characters who called Downton home.

That included Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham (Hugh Bonneville), his wife Cora Crawley (Elizabeth McGovern), their three daughters Mary (Michelle Dockery), Edith (Laura Carmichael), and Sybil (Jessica Brown Findlay).

Honestly, though, Violet is the best character (Picture: Nick Briggs)

Outside of the noble Crawleys, you had the servants, including Mr Carson (Jim Carter), Mrs Hughes (Phyllis Logan), Gwen Dawson (Rose Leslie) and a million other familiar faces.

Of course, the real star of the show was Violet, the Dowager Countess of Grantham (Maggie Smith), whose acerbic tongue made her a fan favourite.

The series also boasted an impressive stable of guest stars, including Paul Giamatti, Charlie Cox, and Iain Glen.

Downton was a ginormous commercial and critical hit in the UK.

Boasting an impressive 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, the first episode alone brought in 9.2 million viewers, and it became a staple of ITV’s Sunday schedule from 2010 to 2015.

Unsurprisingly, considering its popularity, Downton went on (over the course of its six-season run) to receive 197 award nominations (49 of which it won).

Downton is still a popular show (Picture: Nick Briggs)

Even now, more than a decade after the show ended, the show is still finding fans.

Josh Curtiss wrote a 5-star Google review in 2023, where he branded it ‘one of his favourite shows ever’.

‘Incredible. There is pretty much nothing more to say,’ he wrote. ‘There is just nothing like watching Season 1 through Season 6, as you watch the changes that occur for every character and the Abbey as a whole.’

Every episode is now on ITVX (Picture: ITV)

Anne Carroll was similarly enthusiastic, writing, ‘I absolutely love this series… There are just too many things to name that make this show special for us. ‘

Matt Kelley, meanwhile, added, ‘Excellent show! So hard to stop watching. I watched the show was on regularly, and I’ve just watched the entire series again online for the second time. And I want to watch it again!’

Following the series’ end in 2015, there were three Downton Abbey movies, the latest of which was released in 2025.