The recent death of the extraordinary Maggie Smith brought back memories of a summer day in 2012. We had heard on the grapevine that the producers of Downton Abbey were looking for extras for filming at Bampton, which was used as a location for the fictional Downton village. I registered with the casting agency and early one morning turned up in a field where it seemed that an entire town had been set up for all the vehicles and back-up services. After having a hair cut and being dressed in a thick 1920s-style suit, I and other extras were marshalled by the 2 A/D (how we thesps refer to the second assistant director).
The scene being filmed in the road outside the church was one in which the Dowager Lady Grantham ((Dame Maggie) would be driven by in her Rolls Royce and would espy Mrs Crawley (Penelope Wilton) walking by. The car would stop, Dame Maggie would get out and the two would have a conversation. This was reshot several times from different camera angles while a coach load of Americans on a Downton Abbey tour looked on.
The extras were used as “background” - the people you see wandering around to provide a touch of verisimilitude in what would otherwise be a deserted street. I was paired with another extra dressed as the vicar and we were told to walk slowly along apparently looking at the church and admiring its architecture. Others walked with bicycles, pushed prams, carried parcels and so on. “Be careful around Maggie,” counselled the 2 A/D. “She’s in a grumpy mood today."
After lunch in a converted double-decker bus we reassembled for another sequence by the entrance to the church. At this point things went awry for me as I began to feel distinctly ill; not a result of the lunch but the start of a bug which laid me up for the next couple of days. I said I had to drop out and propped myself against a nearby tombstone while waiting for the crew medic to check me over. Far from being grumpy, Dame Maggie came over to me with Penelope Wilton, asked me how I was feeling and expressed sympathy. Lovely lady, I thought.
The scene duly appeared in one episode of season 4 though you would need at least a 240 inch screen to identify the small figure in the far distance. I stayed on the books of the casting agency for a while but no other jobs came up within striking distance from home so I de-registered. But at least I can boast that I have acted with Maggie Smith.
Gordon Elliot
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