POP CULTURE NEWS, EDITION EIGHT: ‘DOWNTON ABBEY’ IS IN ‘NEW ERA’ IN 2022
Hey there! If you’re visiting, welcome. I’m so glad you’re here. If you’re a frequenter of this space, same to you; always glad to have you and appreciate your comments and visits. It’s Friday (again!) and so we’re diving into the pop culture world of news-y things. We’re on our weekly Pop Culture News Edition eight on this November 12th – or mostly just all about Downton Abbey and the excitement there!
LIST | POP CULTURE NEWS: EDITION SEVEN IS ABOUT ALL TOO WELL, ‘THE HATING GAME’ + MORE!
There’s not much news I see today, or at least not much I think is interesting. But there are two big things that happened this week in period drama (Downton Abbey) and music (Taylor Swift). Let’s jump right in and talk about the things…!
POP CULTURE NEWS EDITION EIGHT
1: RED 2.0 IS HERE
Taylor Swift continues her re-records of prior albums (the purpose of which is to give her full ownership), and her latest to drop is Red. This version includes every original track from Red, including the bonus tracks plus six all new recordings and the much hyped 10 minute version of ‘All Too Well.’ She also included ‘Better Man’ (written by Swift, but recorded by Little Big Town) and ‘Babe,’ which Taylor sent to the duo Sugarland and they did record.
POP CULTURE NEWS, EDITION EIGHT: ‘DOWNTON ABBEY’ IS IN ‘NEW ERA’ IN 2022 #REDTAYLORSVERSION #ALLTOOWELL #TAYLORSWIFT #DOWNTONABBEY #PERIODROMANCE #PAULRUDD Share on XMost people are giddy about ‘All Too Well’ in general, which is largely believed to be about Swift’s brief relationship with Jake Gyllanhaal, so now the original ten minute version is in the world. I like the song fine from the original recording of Red, but it’s not my ultimate most favorite song. On a late night talk show, Taylor recounts that she wrote this original version one day while rehearsing for the Speak Now tour. She shares that she showed up and wasn’t feeling at her best because of the emotional things she was going through; she started playing on her guitar and some of the band members joined in, and the sound man even recorded the song. In the same interview, she shares that this is the song she’s most proud of on her version of the album because these 10 minutes is its original form.
What do you think about this “Red 2.0”? I’ll have more thoughts, but I’ll share that on another day.
If you want to listen or purchase the album, you can find Red digitally on Amazon or on Audio CD.
2: SECRETS OF ‘A NEW ERA’
There’s been teasers and brief peeks this week into what’s to come in the 2022 theater release of Downton Abbey: A New Era, the “sequel” film to the feature film Downton Abbey (2020).
If you don’t know what Downton Abbey is, it’s was a 2010 ITV Masterpiece show that ran for six seasons. It follows the wealthy Crawley family, at the start just after the Titanic disaster and into the Roaring 20s. The story has now progressed into the early 30s through triumphs, heartbreak and more than one loss of a beloved character along the way. Post its TV end, the production came with much of the same cast and creator to our screens in 2019 and now will return with a second feature in 2022. Needless to say, I’m here for this.
We don’t really know what the film will be about yet. However, the trailer suggests that Branson, a fan (and mine) favorite character through the years, will finally five his ‘ever after.’ We also glimpse of Mary (and Edith) walking, perhaps in contemplation, through Downton, as well as Edith, the sister who’s gone through more than one challenge. Plus, does it appear they may spend a day on the water? In addition to the return of familiar characters, there’s also new characters set to make their debut, which includes by Hugh Dancy and Laura Haddock. Only question is, who will they be playing?
I have this feeling that this film “feels” kind of sad, but creator Julian Fellowes tells PEOPLE it will be an “unashamedly feel-good movie.” I am here for this.
Based this seconds long teaser or your own hopes, what do you hope is to come for these characters?
BONUS! SEXIEST MAN
Paul Rudd was named People’s sexiest man recently and there’s been some debate. Or so I understand. But hey, if Paul Rudd wins this unimportant thing, why do I care!? I love him in Ant-Man and Clueless, so it works for me.
What do you think about these two big things dropping in the worlds of pop culture? Are you a Swift fan? Do you like her album ‘Red’? Are you all about ‘All Too Well’ or more like me and don’t care? What about Downton? Fan or despiser? Comment all the comments! Let’s chat.
Thank you for visiting! Please, do come back soon.
Yay, so excited for another Downton film!