Blu-Ray Review – Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale

Expanding upon the success of Gosford Park which took an intimate look into the lives of the masters and servants inhabiting an English aristocratic household and combined it with the comedic ensemble sensibility of Robert Altman, Julian Fellowes created a global phenomenon by trading the McCordles for the Crawleys.  Over a period of 15 years Downton Abbey produced 52 episodes, six seasons, and three movies as well as merchandising consisting of clothing, kitchen towels, cookbooks and wine.  Returning for feature length narrative conclusion appropriately called Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is filmmaker Simon Curtis, who previous directed Downton Abbey: A New Era along with the majority of the cast appearing in person, while others are shown through the clever use of archival footage.

For those in love with the series to begin with then this is an appropriate conclusion with the antics of Lady Mary providing an opportunity for social commentary in particular regarding the rather taboo topic of the time: divorce. There are also the other stories centering on the whole idea of the passing of the baton from one generation to the next, both upstairs and downstairs at Downton Abbey.  Even though there are some quick-witted lines, the zinging delivery of Maggie Smith as Violet Crawley is dearly missed. Helping to fill the void is the playful mischievous score composed by John Lunn.  A montage commemorating the various characters and events over the years ties everything into a nice bow.  There is nothing ground-breaking here but diehard fans will not be disappointed.  As for the special features the most novel and pleasant twist is having the actors interview key members of the production team such as Production Designer Donal Woods, Costume Designer Anna Robbins and Composer John Lunn. There is also a commentary track with Simon Curtis and Elizabeth McGovern to go along with various cast gatherings where reminiscing takes centre stage.

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is available on digital platforms to buy or rentnow and on 4K UHD and Blu-ray on November 11, 2025.  

Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer who currently resides in Canada; he can be found at LinkedIn.