S6, E1: We return to Downton Abbey in 1925, and secrets and rifts threaten the unity of the family, while those below stairs navigate social changes which put their futures in jeopardy. Mary’s past catches up with her when an unwelcome visitor delivers an ultimatum, and news about the running of Downton Hospital puts Violet on the warpath. Friends of the Crawleys, the Darnleys, have been forced to sell their ancestral home, and Daisy’s good intentions at the Mallerton House auction have disastrous consequences. With friends in debt and fashions changing, Robert is feeling the pressure to make staff cutbacks at Downton. Carson is concerned that Mrs Hughes is having second thoughts about their impending matrimony, and judgement day finally arrives for Anna and Bates.