10 Seriously Overlooked British TV Shows
6. Upstairs Downstairs
Long before Downton Abbey dominated the interwar period drama, there was Upstairs Downstairs, and how much better it is than the contemporary pretender to the throne. Let it be known that we are talking about the original 1971 to 1975 series, and not the rather shabby 2010 revival.
Portraying the decline of the British aristocracy from 1903 till 1930, the show focused equally on the aristocrats upstairs and the servants downstairs (see what they did there?). From the Edwardians through WWI, the roaring twenties and the stock market crash of 1929, the story of the Bellamy family and their staff are charted, with all the ups and downs along the way.
Rather than falling into an overly simplified drama, the series rather let the complex issues of class come to the fore, and did not shy away from morally complicated situations simply to provide a simple and easy resolution to its issues.
The result is a marvellous piece of work and, I daresay, a great deal more sophisticated in its storytelling and subjects than the aforementioned Downton Abbey.