Living With Spoilers In A UK-First Downton World

[photo fox]

It's dog butt time!

As y'all know, the next season of Downton has begun to air in the U.K., but we won't see it in the U.S. (or other places) for some time. In an effort to bring the conversation into one place, while protecting those whose countries are later on the schedule, here are some notes on the structure of this forum.

• Airdates will be the date the episode airs in the U.K. (This follows PTV policy about non-U.S. shows.)
• Episode topics will follow the "flow" of the airdates in the U.K. This means even if PBS airs episodes together as they've done in the past, they will still "count" as two separate episodes for our purposes.
• If you go into an episode thread and you haven't seen it yet, prepare to be spoiled.
• Elements that have broadcast in the U.K. may also be mentioned in the character, media, etc. topics. Please spoiler tag S6 plot points in non-episode topics for the benefit of North American viewers.
• There are separate topics for Speculation WITH and WITHOUT spoilers, divided into US and UK versions. Everyone is welcome to post in either, but if you are spoiled, please be careful about what you post in the WITHOUT topic. The US thread is for those who haven't seen any episodes yet, and want to speculate on the upcoming season. The UK thread is for those who have seen the UK airings, and want to speculate on the rest of the season going forward.
• Analyses about episodes you've actually seen are NOT spoilers or speculation, and should be posted in the episode topics.

Keep in mind also that discussion in the episode topics should only include elements that have aired in that episode or previous episodes. That's a general site spoiler policy. To use a Season One example, you wouldn't want to post in a thread about the premiere episode that "seeing Branson asking to borrow books from the library, it's hard to believe in a few years he'll be living there as part of the family".

Our goal is to keep this forum "clean" so that everyone can find a place here. In theory people who want spoilers will be able to find them, and people who don't want to be spoiled will be protected. The Brits will have a place they can discuss the episodes right away without all the obnoxious spoiler tagging, and everyone else can join in as their broadcast window rolls around.
 
Please post your comments/questions/concerns below.
 
TL;DR Edition:

• Americans, don't go into episode threads.
• Brits, spoiler tag S6 stuff outside episode threads.
• Make sure you're posting in the correct speculation thread.

Edited September 21, 2015 by photo fox
Revised with S6 info

[Quilt Fairy]

I understand that this is site policy, and it may have worked in the past with a smaller membership, but in a post TWoP world with a show as popular as Downton, I think it's going to be both chaotic and inherently unfair to American viewers, who I assume form the majority of members.  If I don't want to be spoiled, I will have to stay out of this forum entirely until January, and even then I will have to be careful and only view the threads for episodes that have aired in the U.S. I think having separate UK and US forums (I tried using 'fora' but the spell checker doesn't recognize that word) would be a much better idea. Certainly site policy should be able to evolve with the times. Just my $.02.

[SilverShadow]

Maybe a U.S. schedule thread or subforum could be created? But episode specific discussion could be directed to the existing episode threads as they air. And it could be locked between PBS’s airing of the series 5 Christmas Special and the start of series 6 in the U.K. This way those viewers have somewhere to post, but when everyone’s in sync again they can slide back into the main conversations.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

My two cents - as an American who watches this show when it airs in the UK, I love not having to deal with all the spoiler tags or waiting until January to talk about it! And I love finally have separate episode threads because even after TWoP created a separate Downton Abbey forum, it was only for the US viewing so anyone watching the UK airings was still stuck with one long thread for everything.

[David T. Cole]

Episode threads should be easy enough to ignore until US airing. If spoilers outside those threads were to be explicitly marked, that would probably work, yes? 

 

Revised original post above.

[photo fox]

Thanks to everyone for the feedback, and thanks to Dave for updating!

[photo fox]

By popular demand, we have divided the speculation topics into US and UK versions.  The UK version is for those who have seen the UK episodes to speculate going forward.  The US version is for those who haven't seen any episodes yet (and will turn into a "speculate the rest of the season" topic once they start airing on PBS.)

 

I have edited the post above to reflect.

[photo fox]

"Bumping" this topic with a new post to encourage everyone to refresh themselves on the guidelines above, as we start our final grand season/series together.

Questions? Let me know!

[ZoloftBlob]

Photofox...where do babies come from? :/

[photo fox]

Photofox...where do babies come from? :/

Well, when two people really love each other, or like each other, or decide to have a sex week...

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Just make sure that the chambermaids are blindfolded!

[Artymouse]

Shouldn't there be a policy on the Downtown Abbey in the Media thread? I wandered in and learned a plot point from a later episode from this season. I opened the thread, and it took me to the most recent page. The post wasn't spoiler-tagged, just a discussion of a new character, and by the time I realized it was about a Season 6 character who wasn't in the first episode, I was already spoiled about a major plot development for the season. 

[photo fox]

Yes, anything that hasn't aired in the U.S. yet should be spoiler tagged in any thread beyond the episode threads, as per the note above.

 

I try to keep up with the topics as best I can, but if anyone sees anything that should be spoiler tagged, please use the report button under the post.  That will alert the entire mod team and will get the post hidden as quickly as possible.

 

Thanks!

[caligirl50]

I am taking this comment to this thread as episode 5 aired tonight in the US and I am surprised at so many of the comments on that thread (maybe because I read too much before the show aired here).  Julian Fellowes has said as well as Allen Leech that Tom and Mary are not going to be a romantic item.  Not ever. They are brother and sister.  That's it.  

 

In addition, PBS aired a special before the final season premiered in the US and Julian said there is one more big disappointment for Edith.  I believe she tells Bertie that Marigold is her daughter and he won't be able to accept it and drops her.  I think that is the disappointment.

 

I believe I know what happens with Robert's storyline, Mary's, Mosley's and Baxter's.  I know a few other things that I saw/read accidentally but not enough to comment on it.

Bye for now.

[whatsatool]

They have a librarian? And a budding socialist in Daisy. It is funny how languid the Crawley's lives are. Love the scolding about Elizabeth Bennet. And no Mary is very different from Irene. I don't know how you could compare them.

Edited February 8, 2016 by whatsatool