Georgina Worsley

Cast

Key

Regular cast (4 or more episodes)

Recurring cast (2–3 episodes)

Guest cast (1 episode)

Upstairs

Bellamy family

Portrayed by Rachel Gurney, Lady Marjorie Helen Sybil Bellamy (née Lady Marjorie Helen Sybil Talbot-Carey; 6 May 1860 or 12 July 1864 – 15 April 1912) is married to Richard Bellamy and the mother of James and Elizabeth. In the summer of 1906, she has an affair with a much younger man, Charles Victor Hammond, a captain in the Khyber Rifles and a friend of her son James. Lady Marjorie continues to employ their under-parlour maid Sarah when she becomes pregnant and then miscarries the illegitimate child of James. Blackmail for Lady Marjorie's affair later helps her chauffeur and Sarah in leaving service and purchasing their own business, a garage. Lady Marjorie dies in 1912, a victim of the sinking of the RMS Titanic, while her lady's maid, Miss Roberts, survives.

Portrayed by David Langton, Richard Pemberton Bellamy, Viscount Bellamy of Haversham (1853–before 1936), was the youngest son of the parson of Burnham Trenton in Norfolk, Charles Bellamy, and his wife Hannah. As a young man he won a scholarship to Oxford University, where he excelled. In 1880, he married the wealthy Lady Marjorie Talbot-Carey and became a Conservative MP. They had two children, James and Elizabeth. Richard has an older brother named Arthur (John Nettleton), who bullied Richard as a child. In 1909 Arthur visits Richard, the two have a falling out and they never speak to each other again.

Early in the series he becomes a junior minister (Civil Lord of the Admiralty).

He has a brief, steamy affair with a Vienna-born French Countess de Ternay, which ends on wistfully friendly terms when they both realise neither has the wealth that their public appearances imply.

Widowed by Lady Marjorie's death in 1912, he marries Virginia Hamilton, a war widow, in 1919, having been created Viscount Bellamy of Haversham and a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1917.

In the 2010 revival of Upstairs, Downstairs, Rose Buck refers to her late master, Lord Richard Bellamy of Haversham, with the implication that Richard had died sometime between 1930 and 1936; Rose later claims that "The Bellamys", meaning Richard and Virginia, gave Rose a teapot for all of her hard work when she left their service sometime between 1930 and 1936.

Other Upstairs characters

Veteran actress Cathleen Nesbitt portrayed Mabel Talbot-Carey, Countess of Southwold. She was the mother of Lady Marjorie and grandmother of James and Elizabeth Bellamy. She married Walter Hugo Talbot-Carey, large landowner and influential Conservative politician, sometime in the early 1860s; by this marriage she had two children – Lady Marjorie and Hugo, Lord Ashby and later Earl of Southwold. Her husband also had a brother and at least one nephew, who succeeded Hugo as Earl of Southwold in 1912 when he and his sister Lady Marjorie died in the sinking of the RMS Titanic. She was often accompanied by her useful but snobbish lady's companion Miss Hodges, a clergyman's daughter from Cromer. On a visit to 165 Eaton Place Lady Southwold allegedly loses a valuable brooch, leading to a suspicion of theft by the staff. A Cartier jeweller later arrives at the house stating that she left the item at the shop to have a loose stone reset. At Christmas 1913 she gives Georgina a diamond filigree necklace that has been in the family for four generations. Towards the end of World War I the old lady insists on a private ambulance being used to bring her wounded grandson James back from France. The possibility of Georgina going to 'her grandmother's house at Southwold' is mentioned at the time of Hazel's death, so Lady Southwold was still alive in November 1918. She is not, however, referred to again in any way.

Portrayed by Margaretta Scott, Lady Southwold's sister, Lady Katherine "Kate" Castleton (died 1921), was to have presented Elizabeth to King Edward VII at a Londonderry House ball in 1905. By 1912, she is known as 'stone deaf and not very good company' dying in 1921 and leaving James £1,000, some of which he used to buy an aeroplane.

Portrayed by John Quayle, Lord Newbury (later the Marquess of Newbury) is James Bellamy's best friend, who attended the same schools and served as an officer in the Household Cavalry with him. He first appears in the fourth episode of series 1, but was then known as Lieutenant Billy Watson. A meek, quiet, and decent man known to his friends as Bunny, he marries Lady Diana Russell in 1912 having inherited his title and estates the previous year. He served gallantly in the Great War up to 1917 when he was promoted to be an aide-de-camp and taken out of the frontline. Dominated by his spouse, he is happiest playing his expected role of a traditional English country squire, a duty described by his wife as "scratching the backs of pigs with a glazed look in his eye." Faced with his wife's adultery, he refuses to cause a scandal believing that "no man should divorce a woman" and offers to give her grounds instead. When Diana returns to him, he takes her back without a qualm, but the couple remain childless.

Downstairs

Alfred Harris

Portrayed by George Innes, Alfred Harris (1868–1913) is the original footman at Eaton Place from 1895. In 1905 he is forced to flee in disgrace after being caught in a sexual situation with an upstairs guest, Baron Klaus von Rimmer. In 1913, Alfred returns to Eaton Place in search of refuge, after murdering his most recent employer (and lover). A dramatic standoff results, with Alfred holding Edward hostage at knifepoint. Alfred is subsequently hanged, although Rose protests against the sentence, arguing it was not right to execute a person 'who's not right in the head.'

Daisy Peel (later Barnes)

Daisy Barnes (née Daisy Peel) (born 11 May 1895) is the under house parlour maid from 1913 to 1918, and the head house parlour maid from 1919 to 1930, when she goes with Edward to work for Lord and Lady Stockbridge. Daisy was raised in a poor family in the London slums, and she is especially sympathetic to the struggles of the working class. She is portrayed by Jacqueline Tong, who was nominated for an Emmy (Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actress).

Edward Barnes

Portrayed by Christopher Beeny, Edward Barnes (born 24 January 1889) replaces Alfred as footman in 1906, and stays until he leaves to go to war in 1915, having just married Daisy. Edward is a high-spirited, honest and happy person and the source of happy banter, but suffers from severe shell shock after returning from the front. After the war, and following a short period in which he and Daisy leave service, he becomes chauffeur and under butler to the Bellamys, and in 1930 he becomes butler to Lord and Lady Stockbridge.

Emily

Portrayed by Evin Crowley, the devout Catholic Irish kitchen maid Aoibhinn (pronunciation the same as the Anglicised version of the actress's name) is known in the house as Emily (1881–1907). She is a very kind, if awkward, girl who is frequently scolded by Mrs Bridges. In the episode I Dies From Love, Emily falls hopelessly in love with a footman named William from the household of Lady Bellamy's committee associate, Mrs. Van Groeben. They spend several of their days off together, and Emily desperately wants to marry him. However, when an envious Mrs. Van Groeben tells William he cannot see Emily any more, William drops her, revealing that he never cared about her anyway; he tells his mistress "It was only a bit of fun". But no-one (except for Rose) really understands how much in love Emily is. Mrs. Bridges quite savagely dresses Emily down about her affections for William. She is completely lost without William, and when he cruelly ignores her on his next visit to the house and returns her love letter unopened, Emily is so distraught that she commits suicide. Mrs. Bridges's bad conscience over the suicide is not assuaged until Sarah, an under-parlour maid who has worked for a carnival, leads a fake seance in which Sarah relays Emily's forgiveness to Mrs. Bridges.

Frederick Norton

Portrayed by Gareth Hunt, Frederick Norton (1885–?) first appears as James Bellamy's Army batman Trooper Norton when he arrives at Eaton Place to return some of James's belongings when James is believed killed in October 1917. After the war, and following Edward's departure, Frederick is hired by James as footman. In June 1927, Frederick and Lady Dolly Hale start an affair, and Frederick resigns to start a new life in films and as an escort.

Gregory Wilmot

Portrayed by Keith Barron, Sergeant Gregory Walter Wilmot (circa 1879 – 1916) is Rose's fiancé. A British sheep farmer living in Australia, he has socialist views. He and Rose meet on a tram in April 1914 when he accidentally sits on a plum cake she is carrying. They soon start courting, and within a week, Rose agrees to go back to Australia with him and become his wife, but hesitant and fearful, she changes her mind at the last minute. A later exchange of letters clears up the alleged rumour that he already had a wife. After the outbreak of war, he becomes a sergeant in the ANZACs and fights at the Battle of Gallipoli. While on leave in London 1916, he seeks out Rose and they agree to marry when the war ends; later there is a brief mention that they will marry on his next leave in London. However, late in 1916 he is killed by a sniper while returning from patrol and dies instantly. He leaves Rose £1200 in his will; Rose keeps the money as a talisman of their relationship until losing it in the 1929 stock market crash, her investment having been advised by James Bellamy.

Mr Angus Hudson

Angus Hudson (1856–?) is known as "Hudson" to the Bellamys, and as "Mr. Hudson" to the servants. Hudson originally came from Scotland, born to Ian and Margaret Hudson; he also has a brother Donald and a sister Fiona. He works as the butler of Eaton Place, and is known for his conservative views. He is portrayed by Gordon Jackson, who won an Emmy (Supporting Actor, Single Performance, Comedy or Drama Series, for the episode "The Beastly Hun.").

Lily Hawkins

Portrayed by Karen Dotrice, Lily Hawkins (born circa 1901 in Shoreditch, London) arrives at Eaton Place as under house parlour maid in January or May 1919 to replace Daisy, who has left for a new life with Edward. Lily is a quiet, hardworking and caring girl. In the spring of 1924, Lily and Hudson start to spend their time off together and Hudson expresses a desire to marry her. However, Lily sees Hudson as more of a father figure. She leaves Eaton Place without telling anyone and goes to live with her widowed mother in Banbury.

Miss Maude Roberts

Portrayed by Patsy Smart, Maude Roberts (1850–?) is Lady Marjorie's long-time Lady's maid (or personal maid). Known as "Roberts" upstairs and "Miss Roberts" downstairs, she is often fussy and suspicious of those around her, both upstairs and downstairs. During an afternoon tea in the servant's hall she reveals a little about herself to the other servants stating that as a young woman her father had caught her dating a young man. Displeased, he later sent her into domestic service where she has risen through the ranks to her lady's maid position and remained to the present. In April 1912, Miss Roberts survives the sinking of the RMS Titanic while travelling to America with Lady Marjorie, who perishes. After being listed as missing, Miss Roberts shows up at 165 Eaton Place, to the astonishment of the household, having not been registered on the Carpathia's manifest of survivors. She is however emotionally disturbed by the sinking and loss of Lady Marjorie, taking the blame personally, and is later sent off by Richard to a psychiatric ward.

Mrs Kate Bridges

Kate Hudson, née Bridges (1858–sometime after 1931) was the cook at 165, Eaton Place throughout the whole series. She was portrayed by Angela Baddeley, who was nominated twice for an Emmy (Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actress). In later life she outwardly appears to be a tyrannical and harsh battle-axe, particularly to the awkward scullery-maid, Ruby, but she is a kind and affectionate woman and regards Ruby as the daughter she never had. When another maid, Emily, commits suicide after her suitor coldly rejected her, Mrs. Bridges felt guilt for constantly nagging and scolding Emily. Information given on-screen about the marital status of Mrs Bridges was contradictory. In the first series episode "Why Is Her Door Locked?", Mrs Bridges mentions a husband who died fifteen years previously; and in the episode featuring a visit to the house by King Edward VII, Lady Marjorie states that their cook was not a French chef but "a temperamental widow from Bristol." However, in the third series finale "The Sudden Storm", Mr Hudson states that there was never a "Mr Bridges", but that the "Mrs" was a courtesy title customarily applied to a cook in a gentleman's household. In the final episode, she and Hudson are married and moved to open a seaside boarding house in Hastings. Kate was still alive and well in 1931 (Rose wrote to 'Mrs Hudson' that year according to the second TV Times Upstairs Downstairs special).

Pearce

Portrayed by Brian Osborne, Mr Pearce (1872–?), whose first name is never revealed, is the coachman from 1903 until 1909, when he is replaced by the much-more resourceful and motivated Thomas Watkins. According to the narrative, Pearce does not like new-fangled motor cars, and returns to his previous position as head groom to Lady Wanborough tending to her stables.

Rose Buck

Rose Buck (born 1873) was born to a gamekeeper and his wife on the Southwold estate where Lady Marjorie was born and raised. At the age of 13 she entered service. She says that as a child, she watched a cart arrive on the estate with various goods from London and then leave again and longed to know where it had been, and so went into service with Lady Marjorie when asked. Rose says that, many times during her adult life, she wished she had never noticed the cart. Kind-hearted and loyal but slightly naïve, she is the head house parlourmaid at Eaton Place from 1903 to 1919 (including a short stint as Elizabeth Kirbridge's lady's maid and between maid in Greenwich), and Virginia Bellamy's lady's maid from 1919 to 1930. During the war years she also works as a conductress. She is portrayed by Jean Marsh, who was nominated for an Emmy for Best Actress in a Drama series four times, winning once. In the revival series, Upstairs, Downstairs (2010), in 1936, Rose is running her own domestic service agency but is persuaded to return to 165 Eaton Place and serve as housekeeper for its new household. By 1938, however, she has contracted tuberculosis, and is living in a sanitorium. Rose remains in the sanitorium as the series concludes, just as World War II begins in September 1939.

Ruby Finch

Portrayed by Jenny Tomasin, Ruby Finch (born Bradford, 1892) is the scullery maid at Eaton Place. She was preceded by Doris, Nellie, and Emily. Ruby first comes to Eaton Place in 1908 or 1909, just after Elizabeth's marriage to Lawrence. She is initially illiterate, guileless, and prone to distraction. During the next several years she learns to read well and makes progress toward becoming a skilled cook. She leaves the house in 1915 to become a munitionette at Silvertown, but returns early in the following year when the factory is destroyed in the Silvertown explosion. She briefly leaves again in 1929 to become maid of all work to the middle class Mrs Waddilove. In 1930 she goes with Mr and Mrs Hudson to work at their boarding house, with hopes to inherit it later.

Sarah Moffat

Portrayed by Pauline Collins, Sarah Moffat (born July 1882, also known as Clémence Dumas, Clémence Moffat, and Sarah Delice) claims to be the daughter of Albert Moffat and Marianne Dumas and the great-granddaughter of Alexandre Dumas. She had a brother, Charlie, who died young, and a sister named Sophia. Illiterate and inexperienced, she is sent to Eaton Place by an agency for domestic servants. She is given the name Sarah by Lady Marjorie. She quickly strikes up an unlikely friendship with head house parlourmaid, Rose.

In June 1904, Richard Bellamy commissions Guthrie Scone to paint his wife. Sarah is sent to deliver Lady Marjorie's dresses to his studio, and soon Scone is painting her as well. When both paintings are exhibited together as "The Mistress" and "The Maids", Sarah and Rose, whom Scone has painted from Sarah's descriptions, are nearly dismissed, but Scone persuades Richard to keep them on. Two months later, Sarah, upset by James's half-hearted affections, leaves Eaton Place.

In 1908, Sarah returns to Eaton Place but leaves again soon after when she is accused of theft. She then begins a career as music hall entertainer Clémence Dumas/Sarah Delice, known for saucy songs like "What Are We Going to Do with Uncle Arthur?" At about the same time, she starts an affair with James Bellamy and becomes pregnant, resulting in James's being sent to India. Sarah loses the baby and ultimately marries the Bellamys' chauffeur, Thomas Watkins, and they leave service. Their lives after leaving Eaton Place are portrayed in the spinoff series Thomas & Sarah.

Thomas Watkins

Portrayed by John Alderton, Thomas David Watkins (born circa 1876) grew up in Wales. In June 1909, he becomes manservant and later chauffeur to Lawrence and Elizabeth Kirbridge, and friends with Rose. Thomas is a bright and resourceful man, looking for "scope" (every opportunity to better himself) and so learns everything he can about driving and fixing motor cars. He identifies himself to Richard Bellamy as "chapel", an expression used for members of independent or nonconformist places of worship: and he certainly is an independent thinker. He can be both kind and very harsh. When the Kirbridge marriage ends, Thomas becomes chauffeur to the Bellamys at Eaton Place where he ultimately blackmails Richard and Lady Marjorie, and leaves service to marry Sarah and to set up a garage business together.