Watch Downton Abbey: The Best Maggie Moments on PBS. See more from Masterpiece.
"Downton Abbey" closed out its second season on WTTW/PBS Sunday, and Lady Violet, the Dowager Countess of Grantham, sent it off with more than enough zingers to make fans want more of the series, and Dame Maggie Smith.
PBS celebrates Smith's delightful performance with a video gift, the Best Maggie Moments, set to the tune of Rod Stewart's "Maggie May." It includes perhaps her best dig of the season, aimed squarely at the ego of Sir Richard:
Sir Richard: I'm leaving in the morning, Lady Grantham. I doubt we'll meet again.
Lady Violet: Do you promise?
Love her. But the Dowager Countess isn't just good for a put-down. She also doles out the wisdom only a woman who has been around for decades can. One of my favorite lines, also directed at Sir Richard, was this wise bon mot: "Life is a game in which the player must appear ridiculous."
I love that line.
In Season 3 of the series, Lady Violet gets a new nemesis in the form of Martha Levinson, the American mother of Lady Grantham (Elizabeth McGovern). That's going to be fun, because Oscar winner Shirley MacLaine is playing Martha. Look out Maggie!
What did you think of the season finale? Of Maggie's performance? Below are two more Best Lady Violet Moments videos made by fans. Enjoy!
