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Upstairs, Downstairs

Season 1

13 listed hours · 1971–1975 · ITV / PBS

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From the desk

How this season is filed

Filed by Rex Fontaine · Golden Age Dispatch

The Bellamy townhouse splits the frame: Edwardian masters above, servants with plot power below. Masterpiece Theatre's great ambassador, long before country-house soaps became a streaming habit. Class as dual protagonist, and the below-stairs breakouts that wrecked viewers more than drawing-room manners ever could.

TV Flash files Season 1 of Upstairs, Downstairs (1971–1975) on ITV / PBS as the first listed season of 5 — 13 listed hours, 1971-10-10–1972-03-05 from “On Trial” (S01E01) to “For Love of Love” (S01E13). Titles, dates, and synopses on file — no invented recaps.

Desk essentials in this season

  1. S01E01 On Trial

    On Trial opens the split frame. Edwardian masters above, servants with plot power below: Masterpiece Theatre's great ambassador, class as dual protagonist from the first hearing.

  2. S01E02 The Mistress and the Maids

    The Mistress and the Maids names both floors in one title. Below-stairs breakouts already wrecking viewers more than the drawing room: country-house soap as serious weekly craft.

  1. S01E01

    On Trial

    On a crisp autumn morning in 1903, a young woman seeks employment in a fashionable London townhouse.

  2. S01E02

    The Mistress and the Maids

    Richard Bellamy engages an artist to paint a portrait of his beautiful wife, Lady Marjorie.

  3. S01E03

    Board Wages

    Matters get out of hand when the servants mock their employers while the family are away on a summer holiday.

  4. S01E04

    The Path of Duty

    Elizabeth returns from studying abroad and the household are in a frenzy, preparing for Elizabeth's entrée into London society.

  5. S01E05

    A Suitable Marriage

    Elizabeth decides not to marry Angus and is captivated by a German-baron visiting England at Christmas.

  6. S01E06

    A Cry for Help

    A Cry for Help — Season 1, Episode 6 of Upstairs, Downstairs. Aired 1971-11-14. Full plot synopsis not yet on file; see the show package for context.

  7. S01E07

    Magic Casements

    Magic Casements — Season 1, Episode 7 of Upstairs, Downstairs. Aired 1972-01-23. Full plot synopsis not yet on file; see the show package for context.

  8. S01E08

    I Dies from Love

    I Dies from Love — Season 1, Episode 8 of Upstairs, Downstairs. Aired 1972-01-30. Full plot synopsis not yet on file; see the show package for context.

  9. S01E09

    Why is Her Door Locked?

    Why is Her Door Locked? — Season 1, Episode 9 of Upstairs, Downstairs. Aired 1972-02-06. Full plot synopsis not yet on file; see the show package for context.

  10. S01E10

    A Voice from the Past

    A Voice from the Past — Season 1, Episode 10 of Upstairs, Downstairs. Aired 1972-02-13. Full plot synopsis not yet on file; see the show package for context.

  11. S01E11

    The Swedish Tiger

    The Swedish Tiger — Season 1, Episode 11 of Upstairs, Downstairs. Aired 1972-02-20. Full plot synopsis not yet on file; see the show package for context.

  12. S01E12

    The Key of the Door

    The Key of the Door — Season 1, Episode 12 of Upstairs, Downstairs. Aired 1972-02-27. Full plot synopsis not yet on file; see the show package for context.

  13. S01E13

    For Love of Love

    For Love of Love — Season 1, Episode 13 of Upstairs, Downstairs. Aired 1972-03-05. Full plot synopsis not yet on file; see the show package for context.

More from the 1970s.