'Downton Abbey' Season 5 Recap, Plot Spoilers: Mary and Her Romantic Getaway
"Downton Abbey" saw more of the old giving way to the new in its recent episode which aired last Sunday at 9 p.m. ET on PBS. Mary (Michelle Dockery) was a prime mover again as she planned her romantic getaway with Tony Gillingham (Tom Cullen).
The episode started with the maid discovering a picture of a baby in Edith's (Laura Carmichael) room. She had gone to visit her daughter at the Drewe's as Tony's wife became more suspicious of her. While preparing for her getaway with Tony, Mary sends Anna (Joanne Froggatt) to buy contraceptives from town, and she manages to complete the task in spite of the shopkeeper staring judgmentally at her.
Charles Blake (Julian Ovenden) then learnt from Mary that she had chosen Tony over him. He said it would never work out as she was "cleverer than Tony."
Meanwhile Simon Bricker (Richard E. Grant), who visited along with Charles, flirted with Cora (Elizabeth McGovern), while Robert (Hugh Bonneville) objected to it by stating that "he was flirting with the dog."
Edith, wanting to spend more time with her daughter, asked Robert and Cora if she could be her godmother, and they agreed. Baxter (Raquel Cassidy) meanwhile is confronted by Molesley (Kevin Doyle) who wanted to know why she stole from her former employer. But she refused to answer.
Another major event in the episode took place in the war memorial which everyone finally agreed should be built in the town as per Robert's wishes. After that, Rose (Lily James) managed to convince Robert to get a radio on which they heard the King's speech.
Attention then shifted to Lord Merton (Douglas Reith) inviting Violet (Maggie Smith) and Isobel (Penelope Wilton) to his home for tea. At that tea, Violet continued to tease and make jokes at Isobel's expense, which annoyed Isobel.
A major shock in the episode was the arrival of a policeman who wanted to know more about Mr. Green (Nigel Harman). This caused Mrs. Hughes (Phyllis Logan) to panic because she provided the alibi for Bates (Brendan Coyle) when she assumed he killed Green after he sexually assaulted Anna.