The Downton Abbey ladies are gorgeous but have they ever looked more stunning than in these amazing new photos from Harper's Bazaar?
The ladies of the ITV drama's cast have teamed up for a shoot that even sees downstairs favourites Mrs Patmore (Lesley Nicol) and Daisy (Sophie McShera) trying out some designer dresses.
Alongside Lesley and Daisy, Mrs Hughes' actress Phyllis Logan looks stunning in a Marina Rinaldi number while upstairs stars like Michelle Dockery (Lady Mary), Laura Carmichael (Lady Edith), Elizabeth McGovern (Countess of Grantham) and Lily James (Lady Rose) rock Valentino, Temperley and Jenny Packham frocks.
The magazine reveals that the actresses had a great time during the shoot, dancing to Beyonce, while Michelle gushed that being all together again was "like a family reunion". On the Downton set, the upstairs and downstairs casts shoot their scenes separately.
The Downton ladies strike a pose (Alexi Lubormirski for Harper's Bazaar)
"Most of Sophie's scenes and all of Lesley's are at Ealing Studios and then I'm at Highclere [with the other aristocrats] most of the time," explained Michelle. "To be together like this is unusual and special, like a family reunion."
As for the return of the show (the fifth season kicks off later this year), Michelle added: "It's lovely to be back on the show again. And because it's the fifth year, we find ourselves reminiscing much more. There's a sense of nostalgia this year because we're that much further on. And some pictures from the first series make us go, 'Oh my God! We were so young.' We've all grown up together in a lot of ways. It's a lovely thing, really."
Michelle admitted she she feels like she's grown with Lady Mary over the years. Explaining her character's no nonsense attitude, the actress said "it was a brashness that came from insecurity, whereas now it's different, she's very confident in her own skin, and I guess [that's] the parallel, really, with my own life; I feel like I've reached a point now where I'm much more content and confident".
Laura Carmichael, Michelle Dockery and Lily James grace the cover (Alexi Lubormirski for Harper's Bazaar)
It helps that Downton creator Julian Fellowes "writes so well for women", she added of the female dominance in the period drama. "He's got a very good way with families. We're all very lucky that we're playing roles that are very complex, not just two-dimensional and predictable."
Off screen the ladies are all super close with Michelle acting as a kind of mentor to the younger Lily James, who reckons that while she's becoming a pro at magazine shoots, she still has trouble on the red carpet:
"You have to pretend a little bit… act like you're super confident and sexy, when really you're like, 'My left t*t's hanging out!'" Lily admitted.
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