Oh, you're all here, hiding from the invaders.Downton Abbey: A New Era · 2022 — Chapter 3 of 18 · 1'39" · B2
Hollywood Comes to Downton, Explained: wouldn't hear of it
The Crawleys meet the film people taking over their home. Guy Dexter charms them as the English-born Hollywood star — "I went over to America ten years ago to try my luck" — while the family plans a trip to the Riviera and their French host refuses to let them stay in a hotel.
What happens
At Downton Abbey, the family greets the film crew making a movie at their house. Mary introduces the actress Miss Dalgleish, and Lord Grantham welcomes the American-based star Guy Dexter. They discuss the family's coming trip to the South of France, and Dexter explains how he left England for Hollywood years ago.
Listen for
wouldn't hear of ittry my luckstops playbe off to
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Phrase of the scene
wouldn't hear of it
坚决不答应；连提都别提
法国别墅的主人得知客人想住酒店，坚持让他们住进别墅，一口回绝了别的安排。
She offered to pay for the meal, but he wouldn't hear of it.
Also in this scene
- try my luck
碰碰运气
- stops play
叫停比赛；打断正事
- be off to
这就动身去……；即将前往……
Everything marked in this scene
24 notes across 37 lines
Sybbie! Hello, darling. What a lovely surprise.Tom had her driven so she could be with her cousins while we're in France.causative have
Tom had her driven so she could be with her cousins while we're in France.Any number of reasons, all good.She is one of the stars of our film.- You've told our host in France that we're staying at an hotel? - Oh, he wouldn't hear of it.He seems a very nice chap, and his English is flawless, which is more than can be said for my French.non-defining relative clause
He seems a very nice chap, and his English is flawless, which is more than can be said for my French.He seems a very nice chap, and his English is flawless, which is more than can be said for my French.She'll look after you, as the rest of us are off to the Riviera.She'll look after you, as the rest of us are off to the Riviera.weak form
She'll look after you, as the rest of us are off to the Riviera.hypothetical condition
I'd come with you if I could.I went over to America ten years ago to try my luck, and I've been there ever since.I went over to America ten years ago to try my luck, and I've been there ever since.Hmm. I'm not the only one.object complement with call
They call us the Hollywood Raj, and we all play cricket once a week.And the weather never stops play.- Last time I was there, I was marooned on the roof of the Negresco with Ronald Colman and Gloria Swanson.liaison
- Last time I was there, I was marooned on the roof of the Negresco with Ronald Colman and Gloria Swanson.On the roof? You can tell us the rest of that story at dinner.How should I know?liaison
How should I know?Hollywood Comes to Downton, explained
What's really going on
Downton is being invaded, and the scene is about how gracefully the family handles it. The film people are treated as guests, but the old class order still shapes every greeting: Lord Grantham presents his daughter, the star is welcomed by rank, and the host's refusal to let visitors pay for a hotel becomes a small performance of manners — 'Oh, he wouldn't hear of it.' Dexter, meanwhile, is a mirror of the modern world: 'I went over to America ten years ago to try my luck, and I've been there ever since.' He speaks of the 'Hollywood Raj' and weekly cricket, turning exile into a charming anecdote, and Lord Grantham, who cannot match it, offers self-deprecating wit about his French. The scene watches tradition and show business take each other's measure without a raised voice.
Theme
ClassOld-world manners meet a film crew: the family ranks every guest by title while treating the intrusion as a matter of hospitality.
GenerationsDexter and the house guests trade stories of England and Hollywood, showing how far the next generation has traveled.
What you'll learn
- 'the invaders' carries more than its dictionary gloss.
- 'wouldn't hear of' changes the pressure of the reply.
- The surrounding lines set the social temperature.
Listen for
- the rest of us — weak form
- marooned on the roof — liaison
- should I know — liaison
He seems a very nice chap, and his English is flawless, which is more than can be said for my French.Lord Grantham's self-deprecating praise of the French host: he admires the man's polished English while joking about his own weak French.
I went over to America ten years ago to try my luck, and I've been there ever since.Dexter explains his life story in a line: he left England to seek opportunity in America and never came back.
They call us the Hollywood Raj, and we all play cricket once a week.Dexter describes the British film community in Hollywood as a little club of expatriates who keep English habits like weekly cricket.
On the roof? You can tell us the rest of that story at dinner.Lord Grantham is intrigued by the glamorous anecdote and politely turns it into an invitation to keep talking at the table.
Questions about this scene
Who is Guy Dexter?
A British-born film star who lives in America. He is one of the actors making a movie at Downton, and he charms the family with stories of Hollywood and the English expatriates who work there.
Why do the Crawleys meet the film crew?
A production company is using Downton Abbey as a location for its movie. The family hosts the actors and crew while most of them plan a trip to the South of France.
What is the 'Hollywood Raj'?
Dexter's name for the circle of British actors working in Hollywood. They form a small community, play cricket weekly, and share the experience of having left England for America.
Why does the French host insist they stay at the villa?
He refuses to let them stay in a hotel and insists they stay at his villa as guests. Lord Grantham notes he 'wouldn't hear of it,' framing the invitation as generous hospitality.
Where are the Crawleys going?
To the South of France, to a villa on the Riviera. They travel via Dover and Calais and then take the Blue Train down to Nice.
Downton Abbey: A New Era · 18 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 4frighten the horsesThe Family Dines with Myrna Dalgleish
Chapter 1who are we to argueViolet Gives Sybbie a French Villa
Chapter 2take a dim viewJack Barber Pitches Filming at Downton
Watching · Chapter 3wouldn't hear of itHollywood Comes to Downton
Chapter 4frighten the horsesThe Family Dines with Myrna Dalgleish
Chapter 5eye someone upDinner at the Villa of the Doves
Chapter 6in a wayTom and Lucy Inherit the Villa
Chapter 7perform miraclesMary Saves the Talkie
Chapter 8On an impulseMolesley Pitches His Own Ending
Chapter 9trouble in paradiseMary Talks About Her Marriages
Chapter 10more than capableRobert Learns Cora Is Ill
Chapter 11in your handsMyrna Walks Off the Set
Chapter 12washed upThe Maids Talk Myrna Down
Chapter 13had in mindViolet Says Goodbye to Tom
Chapter 14await developmentsGuy Offers Barrow a Hollywood Job
Chapter 15an object of desireBarber Asks to Kiss Mary
Chapter 16a fool for loveViolet Tells Mary the Truth
Chapter 17what the blazesMolesley Proposes to Baxter
Chapter 18last the courseViolet's Deathbed GoodbyesChapter 3 of 18 · about 32 min to go