"The Mistress and the Maids" | |
---|---|
'Upstairs, Downstairs' episode | |
Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 2 |
Directed by | Derek Bennett |
Written by | Alfred Shaughnessy |
Original air date | 1971 |
The Mistress and the Maids was the second episode of the first series of the British television series, Upstairs, Downstairs. The episode is set in 1904.
In June 1904, Richard Bellamy commissioned a painter, Guthrie Scone, to paint his wife. Lady Marjorie poses for Bohemian artist Mr Scone. Sarah was sent to deliver Lady Marjorie's dresses to his studio. Soon Scone simultaneously paints a nude portrait of Sarah and (an imagined) Rose, whom Scone painted from Sarah's descriptions. Both paintings were exhibited together as "The Mistress and the Maids" at the Royal Academy, causing a scandal. Both, Sarah and Rose, were nearly sacked. Scone persuades Richard to keep the maids Sarah and Rose on.