Unlike most people her age, Dame Maggie Smith has hardly any time to plant herself on a couch and watch TV all day. Even it means watching her own TV drama series, Downton Abbey.
The 81-year old British actress, who is definitely one of the most esteemed thespians of our time, recently sat down with CBS’ Sunday Morning to talk about her illustrious acting career as well as her plans after Downton Abbey comes to a close.
Dame Maggie Smith Talks About the End of ‘Downton Abbey’
A little over a year ago, Smith revealed that she hadn’t seen a single episode of Downton Abbey and during this recent interview, she admitted that she still hasn’t found the time to enjoy the show.
However, the producers of Downton Abbey may have done something to remedy the situation. Smith implied that she is ready to binge-watch the series now that she has a lot more time on her hands.
“They gave me the boxed set. And I’m going to do all sorts of things now, ‘cause I’m free!” Smith enthusiastically mentioned in the interview.
The British period drama just wrapped up its sixth and final season after first airing in 2010. While British viewers were able to enjoy the finale on Christmas day, American audiences will have to wait a little longer to see how the show ends.
On the first day of Christmas…#Downton pic.twitter.com/nE8ZKlyu8l
— Downton Abbey (@DowntonAbbey) December 25, 2015
Aside from the grueling shoots, Dame Maggie also admitted that she is relieved that she will no longer be wearing those uncomfortable and restrictive corsets that her character Dowager Countess Violet Crawley donned on the show.
She confessed, however, that she used her acclaimed acting skills to evade the use of corsets.
Watch Dame Maggie Smith’s Best Moments on ‘Downton Abbey’
“In actual fact, I have to say that I did cheat a bit,” Smith said. “Because I promised that if I sat up, bolt upright, I made it look as though I were wearing corsets. Don’t tell anybody… I don’t want it to be put around. I was tortured every day.”
Maggie Smith Stars in ‘Lady in the Van’
Dame Maggie Smith is moving on from her aristocratic role on Downton Abbey by portraying a lady who has spent more than a decade stalking a famous playwright in Lady in the Van.