The Duchess of Downton Abbey! Britain’s hit period drama had a very special visitor today, when Kate Middleton (a self-admitted big fan of the show) paid a visit to the TV series’ studios.
Duchess Kate, 33, dressed her bump in a cream Jojo Maman Bebe coat, and wore black heels and her hair down as she arrived at Ealing Studios in West London, home to the hit TV series’ elaborate internal sets, at 10:15 a.m. local time on Thursday, March 12.
Upon arrival, the Duchess gave a dazzling smile as she was introduced to writer and show creator Lord Julian Fellowes and other representatives of Carnival Films and Television, ITV, NBC, and Ealing Studios.
The Duchess was then taken inside to see different areas of the production process, escorted by Executive Producer Liz Trubridge. She visited makeup artists at work, met costume designers, seamstresses and cutters in the workshop, and was introduced to the people behind the design and production process of set scenery and props.
kate meets production staff + tours hair and makeup trucks at @DowntonAbbey set… #DuchessAtDownton pic.twitter.com/xIBokUhNoO
— omid mio scobie (@_mio) March 12, 2015
As her hour and a half visit continued, the eight-months pregnant Princess met cast members Phyllis Logan (Mrs. Hughes), Robert James-Collier (Thomas), Lesley Nicol (Mrs. Patmore), and Sophie McShera (Daisy).
She was presented with a posy by the cast’s youngest member, who plays the character of Master George Crawley, Lady Mary’s son. He met the Duchess alongside his on-screen mom Michelle Dockery, and also presented her with a wooden train for his namesake, Prince George.
George hands The Duchess a wooden train for Prince George #DuchessAtDownton @EalingStudios pic.twitter.com/vRHwhkSIkK
— Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) March 12, 2015
A rep for the show told Us Weekly that Dame Maggie Smith was unwell and could not be in attendance.
The Duchess then watched one take of a scene being filmed in the servants’ quarters (a bedroom) for season six, and a second take of the scene via a monitor in the ‘Video Village’ area, before proceeding to the Servants’ Hall to join cast members, writers, and producers in an official photograph.
After walking through a covered walkway showing the history of Ealing Studios, the Duchess then attended a brief reception and met production, editorial, and Ealing studios staff, as well as more cast members including Hugh Bonneville (Robert) and Elizabeth McGovern (Cora), and visiting the kitchen set (where Nichol and McShera presented her with a cake!), before unveiling a plaque to commemorate the visit.
Mrs Patmore @lesley_nicol and Daisy baked a delicious chocolate cake to commemorate today’s visit to @DowntonAbbey pic.twitter.com/HyhGHb8iia
— Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) March 12, 2015
“It was very exciting for everyone, the cast and the crew. It was a very special day for Downton,” actress Laura Carmichael told Us. “It was a very surreal and exciting experience to be at work and be visited by a member of the royal family. She’s watched the show and really loves it. [Downton creator] Julien Fellowes thanked her in his speech [before she left] for mentioning the show while she was in America and that she watched it and loved it. She helped put us on the map.”
Added Nichol: “Yes, I suppose [she was a bit starstruck] because she’s used to seeing us on the television, which is a bit odd then to suddenly see those people. I hope we made her feel at ease, I think we did because she seemed totally at ease actually.”
Duchess Kate and husband Prince William, 32, have been fans of the show since they became parents to Prince George in July 2013. Allen Leech, who plays Tom Branson on the PBS series (ITV for the UK), was told personally by the Duke of Cambridge himself that he and his wife are hooked on the period drama.
“I was actually at an event last week with Prince William, now the Duke of Cambridge, so yeah — I met him last week, shook his hand,” Leech told Watch What Happens Live back in 2013. “He actually said, ‘I’m a big fan of the show — only now that my wife’s had a baby,'” he revealed.