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The 10 Most Scandalous Moments On Downton Abbey

In between the prim and proper ways of the beautiful estate that is Downton Abbey are secrets, lies, scandals and sometimes, even horrible tragedy. There’s more than meets the eyes when it comes to the Granthams, their elite friends and their staff. In between all of the fancy attire, over the top dinners and massive amounts of cleaning to keep the large house neat and tidy, we have some of the most dirty little secrets.
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1) Lady Mary Gets Naughty With A Turkish Diplomat

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Lady Mary! You saucy minx.

In Season 1 of Downton, Lady Mary gets shagged by a sleazy Turkish diplomat, but it surely doesn’t end up like she, or Kemal Pamuk (btw, that’s Four from Divergent), expected. Not only is it considered morally wrong to go all the way with someone before marriage during the day of Downton, but how about having sex with someone who ends up dead soon after? Talk about a memorable first time.

That’s not even the worst of it. Lady Mary has to clean up the mess (the dead body) with help from her lady’s maid Anna — and her very own mother! Awkward, and what a way for mommy dearest to find out you just gave away your V card. Just picture Anna, Cora and Mary trudging down the hall with Kemal’s dead body. Eventually, they get him back to the comfort of his own room, only for his body to be discovered by Thomas the next morning.

Did the sex kill Kemal? His death was ruled a heart attack, so maybe he had some health issues. Or maybe Lady Mary was just that good in the sack. Whatever the case, Mary’s first time was definitely exciting — but for all the wrong reasons.

2) Mrs. O’Brien With The Soap In The Bathroom

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Don’t drop the soap. Don’t drop the soap. Whoops. Mrs. O’Brien, lady’s maid to Cora, didn’t listen.

Downton is no stranger when it comes revenge and anger, but to purposely harm someone and cause them to lose their baby? Yeah, that’ll make you feel regret and guilt, which is exactly what happened to O’Brien.

Let’s start from the beginning. While eavesdropping (a daily affair at Downton Abbey) on Cora and Violet, O’Brien overhears the duo discussing applications for a new lady’s maid. Well, little does O’Brien know that she isn’t being replaced, the search is for Violet. Without that little piece of knowledge, Cora’s lady’s maid goes to the extreme by plotting a spur of the moment revenge plan against her employer.

The most logical response to getting back at someone? Dropping soap in the bathroom for him/her to slip on and fall. Well, that’s exactly what O’Brien did to Lady Grantham. O’Brien leaves soap on the bathroom floor, and while exiting the tub Cora slips and falls.

O’Brien does second guess her action and calls out for Cora to stop, but it’s too late. Not only does Cora hurt herself, but she also loses her baby. Yep, she was pregnant. As anyone should, O’Brien feels so much remorse that she vows to devote all of her time and energy to Cora.

The lesson here? Eavesdropping will force you to drop the soap, resulting in a horrible tragedy.


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