Downton Abbey’s Only Gay Character Gets Optimistic ‘New Era’
The first Downton Abbey film gave us Thomas Barrow, played by Rob James-Collier, a gay butler whose sexuality was explored throughout the film by way of a short-lived romance with the king’s royal dresser. However, in Downton Abbey: A New Era, currently playing in theatres, Thomas Barrow’s story gets more of a spotlight and his experiences as a gay man are presented under a warmer more optimistic light, with bright hope for his future. For LGBTQI fans of both the show and western television, the introduction of this storyline back in 2010 was a milestone moment. Thomas Barrow is an openly gay character played by an openly gay actor; while in this moment in time this alone may not be much to celebrate, in 2010 this was relatively rare in Hollywood, considering shows like Will & Grace were the height of mainstream gay representation, with straight actors playing the lead roles. At this time streaming services which have now majorly streamlined production and allowed more marginalised stories to be told, were also not yet around. Thomas Barrow.