Synopsis

Free admission!

Reception – 2pm
Screening + discussion – 3pm

UCR ARTS presents a free screening of Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale, followed by a conversation marking the release of Downton Abbey: Politics of Nostalgia, Neoliberalism and Empire by Tabassum “Ruhi” Khan, Associate Professor in the Department of Media and Cultural Studies at UC Riverside.

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale brings the globally beloved series to the big screen as the Crawley family and their staff enter the 1930s. When Mary becomes entangled in a public scandal and financial pressures threaten the estate, Downton faces profound questions of change, continuity, and social standing. As one era closes and another begins, both family and servants must reckon with a shifting world and an uncertain future.

In Downton Abbey: Politics of Nostalgia, Neoliberalism and Empire (Bloomsbury, 2025), Khan explores why contemporary audiences are drawn to romanticized depictions of Britain’s imperial past. Combining textual analysis with audience research, the book argues that while the series often reinforces elite privilege and social hierarchy, its appeal also reflects a deeper longing for stability, mutual responsibility, and social cohesion amid the economic insecurities of the present.

This event is made possible with the support of the CHASS Dean’s Office and the Center for Ideas and Society.

Film Details

Directors: Simon Curtis
Running Time: 123 minutes
Country: UK, USA
Release Year: 2025
Rated: PG

“Fellowes, who touchingly dedicates the film “in loving memory of Dame Maggie Smith,” treats us to a nicely sentimental final sequence that reminds us of all of Downton’s beautiful ghosts, and certainly feels like a goodbye.” – Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times