When "Downton Abbey" was announced as the winner of all those awards -- six, out of 11 nominations -- at last year's Emmy ceremony, most viewers were probably wondering a) what "Downton Abbey" was and b) if someone had left an extra "w" out of the title.
But as the "Upstairs, Downstairs"-ish British drama prepares to debut its second season on PBS Sunday (check local listings for time and channel), plenty of TV fans have taken the time to catch up with the seven-episode first season on DVD and Netflix.
And if you've remained one of the "Downton Abbey" uninitiated, don't let that scare you away from season two. Here are 12 things you need to know to be ready to take the journey down "Abbey" road:
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1 -- It really is "Downton," not "Downtown." Downton Abbey refers to the (fictional) North Yorkshire estate that houses the wealthy Crawley family and their servants. Highclere Castle, the 61-bedroom Victorian manse where all the "upstairs" scenes of the show are filmed, is an hour outside London and is open to the public.
2 -- Season one begins in April 1912, the day after the sinking of the Titanic. The real-world tragedy factors into the plot, as the Earl and Countess of Grantham -- the Crawleys -- have three daughters, no sons, which means there's no male heir to inherit their fortune and the Downton Abbey estate. They had arranged for their oldest daughter, Mary (Michelle Dockery), to wed her cousin, which would have kept their titles, fortune and estate in the family, but the cousin was among those who died in the Titanic sinking.
3 -- Season one ended with the declaration of World War I, which factors heavily into the storylines of season two. Downton Abbey, for instance, becomes a recovery center for wounded soldiers, which unsettles Countess Cora (Elizabeth McGovern) -- who feels like she's losing control of her home -- and Earl Robert (Hugh Bonneville) -- who's upset that he's too old to join in the war efforts.
4 -- "Abbey" is a lush and lavishly produced costume drama, but even viewers who don't usually tune in for "Masterpiece Theater" drama may enjoy the soapy, humorous elements of the show. Lady Mary's love life, for instance, provides both, as she is seduced by a visitor to Abbey, who then dies in her bed. Public knowledge that the unmarried Crawley lost her virginity to a stranger would prove to be scandalous, so Mary's mom and head housemaid Anna help her carry his dead body back to his bed. Later, Mary and Matthew Crawley (Dan Stevens), the new apparent heir to the family fortune, head toward coupledom, and their entanglement continues to play out, in some surprising ways, in season two.
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