Julian Fellowes: Screenwriters’ Lecture

Acclaimed screenwriter Julian Fellowes found success later in life. Carving out his niche in British period dramas for film and television with international hits including Downton Abbey and Gosford Park. Now, he has shared tales of his career and dropped hints about a potential Downton Abbey prequel while delivering his BAFTA Screenwriters’ Lecture.

• Read a transcript of the event

Fellowes achieved almost overnight success with the screenplay for Robert Altman’s 2001 movie; Gosford Park. It earned him both the Writers’ Guild of America Best Original Screenplay Award & an Oscar in 2001. And the film was also nominated for nine BAFTA’s at the 2002 British Academy Film Awards where it won Best Film.

Since this initial success Fellowes has developed an impressive body of work. Typically this has been in the period drama genre including Downton Abbey, The Young Victoria and Vanity Fair. And as he himself put it; “I accept that I have an arena. I’ve become the go-to-guy for period stuff because I’ve had success in the field.”

Fellowes lecture took the audience on an entertaining and inspiring romp through his successes, failures and learnings in the industry of screenwriting. Though he proclaimed at the start of his lecture to “know little more than any of you”, he is in fact a man of extraordinary talent. And hearing him speak of his youth and life experiences was first hand testament to his skill at weaving a tale and drawing the audience hopelessly into his world.

Such is the technique we have so ostentatiously seen displayed in TV drama Downton Abbey. The show has hooked millions of fans worldwide with an extraordinary viewership spanning more than 100 countries across the globe. When quizzed on the success of Downton, Fellowes was unsure on what to attribute the immense fan base. But, he ventured; “one of the things we did right was to treat every character with equal narrative weight. There’s never a moment when you feel you’re going back to the lesser story, because there isn’t one.”

Fellowes went on to tantalise Downton fans with talk of a prequel to the series that would provide a narrative to “the courtship of Robert and Cora, when all those American heiresses were arriving in London”. He explained; “They had a slightly troubled courtship, because she was in love with him before they married, as we know, and he married her entirely for her money. I sort of feel there’s something quite nice in there because he’s a decent cove, and so he feels rather guilty about this which has affected their marriage beyond that.”

The screenwriter also considered that the key to his success could be partly attributed to the fact he has always written what he wants to write. Always focusing on the subjects that fascinate him; those of class, relationships and exposing the good in people. “I think you should make films and programmes you want to watch” he explained.

He then added, with genuine humility, that the success of his career as a whole has also had a lot to do with luck. He implored fellow screenwriters not to lose heart if they had yet to be ‘found’, acknowledging that not all talent is ever uncovered. “Not everyone gets their hour and I am incredibly lucky and grateful that I am having mine,” he said.

Going on to offer further advice to aspiring screenwriters Fellowes added; “if you’re a writer whose work has yet to be produced, my advice would be to remember that when you’re writing a script it may not necessarily get made. But it may open the door to further commissions.”

Throughout his lecture Fellowes also frequently returned to pay tribute to Robert Altman. The man who gave him that crucial first film commission and to whom he now attributes the launch of his career.

“My greatest stroke of luck was that Altman decided I had something for him. He was a completely free thinker, a maverick and was prepared to fight to protect my Archean vision in a way that is unusual for directors.” And the world is grateful that he did. In launching the career of Julian Fellowes the worlds of film and television are much richer places.