--- description: The show returns in early 2016 title: Watch the New Trailer for the Final Season of 'Downton Abbey' image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt278a86e9b164d75f/698863b0428a9e8adeccf1fd/downton-abbey.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Watch the New Trailer for the Final Season of _Downton Abbey_ by [Megan Daley / Entertainment Weekly](/author/entertainment-weekly/) ## Megan Daley / Entertainment Weekly Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 15, 2015 7:07 PM CUT  MASTERPIECE Downton Abbey The Final Season Premieres January 3, 2016 at 9 PM ET The top PBS drama of all time approaches its climactic chapter as Downton Abbey embarks on its final season. The year is 1925, and momentous change threatens the great house, its owners, and servants. Past scandals are also looming. The beloved ensemble is back for their farewell performance, closing the book on a television legend. Shown from left to right: ELIZABETH MCGOVERN as Cora, Countess of Grantham, ROBERT JAMES-COLLIER as Thomas Barrow, LAURA CARMICHAEL as Lady Edith Crawley, MICHAEL FOX as Andy Parker and KEVIN DOYLE as Joseph Molesley © Nick Briggs/Carnival Film & Television Limited 2015 for MASTERPIECE This image may be used only in the direct promotion of MASTERPIECE. No other rights are granted. All rights are reserved. Editorial use only. MASTERPIECE Downton Abbey The Final Season Premieres January 3, 2016 at 9 PM ET The top PBS drama of all time approaches its climactic chapter as Downton Abbey embarks on its final season. The year is 1925, and momentous change threatens the great house, its owners, and servants. Past scandals are also looming. The beloved ensemble is back for their farewell performance, closing the book on a television legend. Shown from left to right: ELIZABETH MCGOVERN as Cora, Countess of Grantham, ROBERT JAMES-COLLIER as Thomas Barrow, LAURA CARMICHAEL as Lady Edith Crawley, MICHAEL FOX as Andy Parker and KEVIN DOYLE as Joseph Molesley © Nick Briggs/Carnival Film & Television Limited 2015 for MASTERPIECE This image may be used only in the direct promotion of MASTERPIECE. No other rights are granted. All rights are reserved. Editorial use only.Nick Briggs—Carnival Film/PBS by [Megan Daley / Entertainment Weekly](/author/entertainment-weekly/) ## Megan Daley / Entertainment Weekly Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 15, 2015 7:07 PM CUT Saying goodbye to _Downton Abbey_ won’t be easy for fans (and it didn’t seem easy for the [cast](http://www.ew.com/article/2015/08/10/downton-abbey-michelle-dockery-goodbye-instagram "undefined"), either). But the period drama is preparing to enter into its sixth and final season, and PBS has released a new trailer with a sneak peek into what our characters will be up to when the series returns. The upcoming season picks up six months after season 5’s finale, and in 1925, Lady Edith is trying to start a new life in London (“The fact is, I’d like a life”), but her sister Lady Mary doesn’t expect much to come from that. And while Thomas is looking for a friend, Mrs. Hughes just wants her fiancé, Carson, to call her “Elsie” (baby steps). As for the Dowager Countess? Well, she’s still delivering the sassiest comebacks. _Downton Abbey_ returns Jan. 3 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS. _This_ [_article_](http://www.ew.com/article/2015/09/15/downton-abbey-pbs-releases-first-look "undefined") _originally appeared on_ [_EW.com_](http://www.ew.com/ "undefined")_._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4035215/new-trailer-downton-abbey/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4035215/new-trailer-downton-abbey/"},"headline":"Watch the New Trailer for the Final Season of Downton Abbey","datePublished":"2015-09-15T19:07:49.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T10:57:21.882Z","description":"Featuring plenty of Maggie Smith side eye","url":"https://time.com/4035215/new-trailer-downton-abbey/","keywords":["Television","downton abbey"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt278a86e9b164d75f/698863b0428a9e8adeccf1fd/downton-abbey.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Megan Daley / Entertainment Weekly"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt278a86e9b164d75f/698863b0428a9e8adeccf1fd/downton-abbey.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Downton-Abbey","caption":"Downton Abbey","creditText":"Nick Briggs—Carnival Film/PBS","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4035215/new-trailer-downton-abbey/","name":"Watch the New Trailer for the Final Season of Downton Abbey"}}]}] ```