Agatha Christie meets Downton Abbey in this hilarious one-of-a-kind period drama

Calling all period drama fans! There’s a one-of-a-kind parody movie on the way – and it looks like the perfect spoof that blends Agatha Christie with Downton Abbey. Fackham Hall, directed by Jim O’Hanlon (Coronation Street, Your Christmas or Mine?, 100 Streets) and co-written by comedian Jimmy Carr, follows a lovable pickpocket who infiltrates a grand English manor (think Downton‘s Highclere Castle). After a forbidden romance and a shocking murder, chaos erupts among the Davenport family – who are, as the film’s tagline teases, “born to aristocracy, bred for idiocy”.

What happens in the trailer?

The trailer – which genuinely earns a laugh when it declares, “From the studio that watched the first two seasons of Downton Abbey” – introduces Ben Radcliffe as the unsuspecting Eric Noone, who soon finds himself tangled in the absurd lives of the aristocratic Davenport family.

In one clip, Damien Lewis’s Lord Davenport is mysteriously murdered, leading to the call-up of Inspector Watt (Tom Goodman-Hill) – who is aptly named and sporting a detachable moustache that you can’t help but compare to Christie’s Poirot. Other snippets show Eric pouring Champagne for children, Jimmy Carr playing a hilarious priest and Katherine Waterston’s Lady Davenport summing up the chaos in one perfect line: “What on God’s flat earth is going on?”

What is Fackham Hall about?

As for what viewers can expect, the official synopsis reads: “A spoof that crosses Downton Abbey with Airplane! and Monty Python, Fackham Hall follows lovable pick-pocket Eric Noone as he lands a job at a unique English manor house. He quickly rises through the ranks, and a forbidden romance with lady-of-the-house Rose Davenport blossoms. But when an unexpected murder occurs, Eric gets framed – leaving Rose and her family’s future perilously uncertain.”

Who stars in Fackham Hall?

Leading the parody movie is Ben Radcliffe (The Shepherd) as Eric Noone, while Thomasin McKenzie (Old, Last Night in Soho) is Rose Davenport, Katherine Waterston (Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore) plays Lady Davenport and Damian Lewis (Billions, A Spy Among Friends, Homeland) is Lord Davenport. 

They’re joined by Lizzie Hopley as Phyllis Davenport, Emma Laird as Poppy Davenport, Tom Felton as Archibald, Jimmy Carr as Vicar, Tom Goodman-Hill as Inspector Watt and Anna Maxwell Martin – whose role is yet to be announced. 

Rounding out the hilarious cast are Sue Johnston as Great Aunt Bonaparte, Lily Knight as Fifi Valentine, Tim McMullen as Cyril, Laurie Ogden as Patricia, Paula Wharton as Mrs Kitchen and Gemma Wardle as Gladys. 

Fackham Hall will land in cinemas on 5 December.