Downton Abbey's Jim Carter gives glimpse into close off-screen friendships ahead of finale

As anticipation builds for the latest Downton Abbey film, actor Jim Carter has shared a heartwarming insight into the cast's friendships. 

The 76-year-old actor, known for his portrayal of the Crawley family's devoted head butler Carson, appeared on This Morning, where he shared insights into the upcoming movie and the close friendships he has maintained with his co-stars. 

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"I think we're going to see it [the film] soon, but it's going to be a mystery to me," he admitted. 

The star revealed that part of the film was shot at the Great Yorkshire Showground in Harrogate - just a stone's throw away from where he was born. 

"I learned to ride my bicycle on the Great Yorkshire Showground," he reminisced. 

When asked about the cast, he said: "I've got a hot date in about ten days' time with Mrs Patmore (Lesley Nicol), Mrs Hughes (Phyllis Logan), Daisy the maid (Sophie McShera), and Mr Barrow (Robert James-Collier) – the naughty footman, who became my successor as a butler." 

Jim added: "So we meet up for dinners from time to time, and dish the dirt, sort of things." 

The actor, who has appeared in the period drama since series one, also opened up about the late Dame Maggie Smith.

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"We won't see her like again, really somebody, an iconic figure whose career started in classical theatre and then expanded to worldwide fame," he said, adding: "And how lucky we were to have worked so closely with her for so long in Downton Abbey."

Maggie passed away, aged 89, in September with her character, Violet, dying at the end of the second film, Downton Abbey: A New Era. 

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Downton Abbey 3 will be released globally on 12 September with a cast that includes Hugh Bonneville (Robert Crawley) and Elizabeth McGovern (Cora Crawley). 

The Holdovers actor Paul Giamatti and The Gentlemen actress Joely Richardson also star in the Simon Curtis-directed film. 

So far, no plot details have been announced. However, the third film follows 2022's A New Era, which ended in the late 1920s with the heartbreaking passing of Crawley matriarch, Lady Violet, who passed the torch on to her granddaughter Lady Mary to oversee the running of Downton.