Entertainment

Lady Mary lets her hair down

Dan Stevens and Dockery share a rare smile on set. (
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Why is Lady Mary our current favorite Grantham on Masterpiece’s “Downton Abbey”? Could it be that Michelle Dockery plays her as always surprising? In a crowd, for example, she’s just another aristocrat – pretty, dark-haired, stiff of smile and coolly appraising. But when the room clears, and her shoulders sag, dozens of emotions — hurt, hopefulness, fragility — can start churning beneath her alabaster, angular face.

Last April, while on the “Downton” set, it didn’t seem unusual to find Dockery, 30, in the trailer of her good friend and co-star Elizabeth McGovern, who plays her mother on the series. But why was Dockery plucking at a guitar and softly yodeling a country-western tune? (Answer: she occasionally sings backup vocals for McGovern’s band, Sadie and the Hotheads.) This was just the first sign that Dockery isn’t so predictable either.

Q. When did you first realize “Downton Abbey” was catching on in America?

A. I was at the Tea Set in New York and [I heard] a couple talking about the show, saying, “What do you think is going to happen?” Then, as they got up to leave, [the man] took my hand and said, “We all love it. It’s such a wonderful show.” I got such a warm feeling. I just wanted all the cast to be with me just to experience that. I texted Dan Stevens, who plays Matthew, and said, “Dan, it’s amazing. I’m in a café and people are talking about ‘Downton!’ ”

Q. The usually chilly Lady Mary is warming up in season two. Why do you think that is?

A. At the beginning she’s a cold fish. You find her at her hardest, a real snob. She’s quite mean to Matthew Crawley. Then something changes in her when she has that night with Pamuk. As opposed to her just floating around this grand house with all her privileges she becomes very human because something bad has happened. She’s made a mistake. From then on she became much more vulnerable, and continues to be.

Q. Ah, Pamuk: Did they or didn’t do it?

A. I think they did. [Puzzled.] It’s interesting that people would debate that.

Q. Why risk her reputation for a man she barely knows?

A. He was the most stunning thing she’d ever seen. I think she was swept away in the moment. God forbid she got pregnant or something. As Anna said, “You were lucky there.”

Q. Does Mary know that the servants all know that a dead Turkish diplomat was removed from her bedroom in the dark of night?

A. She isn’t fully aware of how many people are aware of that rumor, but I think she’s got an idea. I think it’s pretty obvious. People gossip. I think she tries not to think about it.

Q. Mostly you film at Highclere Castle. Do you feel different when you’re at Ealing Studios, the home turf for the servants’ downstairs scenes?

A. My bedroom is actually at Ealing. When I’m there, particularly in the corridors and the kitchen, I feel very much out of my territory. In some ways it feels like a slightly different job. You’re in London. You can go home every night. And there are certain people that you don’t really get to see [at Highclere] like Siobhan [Finneran], who plays O’Brien, and Sophie [McShera], who is Daisy, the kitchen maid. Occasionally we maybe get to walk past each other. But we never do scenes together. Ever.

Q. When you first started “Downton,” how scared were you of Maggie Smith?

A. Us three girls, the sisters [Sybil and Ethel], we were very nervous. I don’t know if it was the first scene or the second, but we relaxed after she made a joke. Above the mantelpiece in Highclere there’s a sign that says C.C., which is Carnarvon. But she looked at it and said so dryly, “Oh, the mantelpiece was designed by Coco Chanel.” We all fell out laughing. She’s brilliant. I had to sort of up my game around her. I’ve watched her my whole life in films; you’re inspired by actresses like Maggie when you’re starting out.

Q. We’ve discussed Mary’s shortcomings. What are her good qualities?

A. She’s really quite modern for the time. She doesn’t want to just marry the first man she lays eyes on or is conveniently introduced to as part of this problem with the entail. She wants to marry for love. She covers it up [by saying that she’s] marrying for other reasons — so she can have a good life and not stay at Downton and be completely bored. But she’s quite torn, Mary.

She’s in love with Matthew. And it becomes more difficult in series two because time has moved on. Matthew is at war and has overcome her lost love. Without giving too much away, it’s not quite resolved, even now. She’s a very complex character, and I love that about her.