“Were we merry” - Matthew Goode recalls Downton Abbey co-star Maggie Smith’s favorite day on set

British actor Matthew Goode, who played Henry Talbot in the period drama Downton Abbey, is reflecting on filming the series. In a recent conversation with Deadline, Goode recalled a day on set when the entire cast drank rosé and had a great time. While reminiscing, Goode said,

“We went through 22 bottles of rosé. No one was drunk. But my god, were we merry.”

The actor, who first appeared in the series during its fifth season as Lady Mary Crawley’s love interest and eventual husband, recalled that the incident happened while filming the characters’ wedding scenes.

Describing the setup, Goode told Deadline,

“It was the wedding of our characters, and we shot it out very secretively somewhere out in the countryside. I think in Oxford somewhere. And our green room for 20 actors was the garden of an ex-Concorde pilot.”

Right from the start, Goode jokingly prefaced the anecdote by saying,

“This is going to sound jolly unprofessional, and it is a bit unprofessional, but it’s f***ing funny.”

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Matthew Goode went on to describe late actress Maggie Smith’s ‘favorite day on a set ever’

During his conversation with Deadline, Goode shared that the former pilot hosting the Downton Abbey cast offered them a bottle of rosé. Although the actors felt it would be unprofessional to drink while filming, Goode, who was more enthusiastic about having fun, said,

“I’m just a bit naughty…And it was really hot, and it was looking at me and the perspiration was rolling down the bottle and I said, ‘I’ll have a glass, thank you so much.’ And I sat and I quaffed it bloody quickly. And I said, ‘Is it OK if I have another one?’”

Goode went on to describe to Deadline how the other cast members got involved. He said,

“And then you started to see all the other actors, particularly the ones that didn’t have any lines that day, just a big ensemble piece, none of us had that much to do, really. So we all started drinking.”

According to Goode, Maggie Smith, who played the Dowager Countess of Grantham, had a great time. While speaking about the actress who passed away in September last year, Goode told Deadline,

“We actually gave Maggie Smith one of the greatest days of her life, she said. She came off [set], and she said, ‘I think that might’ve been my favorite day on a set ever.’”

Goode went on to reason,

“And if you’ve made Maggie Smith happy, then it can’t be wrong.”

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Matthew Goode on not reprising his role on Downton Abbey

The six-season-long Downton Abbey was followed by two films that continued the stories of the much-loved characters. As the third Downton Abbey film is all set for release this year, Matthew Goode has been notably absent from the second and the third films. About not returning to the show, Matthew Goode spoke to The Hollywood Reporter, and said,

“Well, I was filming [Dept. Q]. And for the scene they wanted to do, it was half a page. So there was never going to be too much in there, but I couldn’t do it.”

Goode also suggested fans view his character’s absence as a positive development, encouraging them instead to focus on Lady Mary’s growth as a “modern feminist icon.”