I’ve never posted this piece here so!! I still really do like it so you’re getting it too now. Not the full image though because I feel like the whole pose looks a bit unnatural now whoops. It’s from a few months ago now so I guess that means I’ve improved since
I’m… going to make a prediction. and I’m not sure if this is right, or entirely plausible.
but I was looking at the way this gifset lays out the shots of Guy Dexter in the trailer–specifically the shot of Anna and Daisy walking away from him all giggly–and it hit me again that I don’t think the shot of Guy Dexter touching Thomas is unequivocally, unobjectionally meant as a pass at him. yes, it’s affectionate, but people can be affectionate, and there’s a whole character trope of Flamboyant Theatre Person (gay or not) who is touchy feely over the top with people. and that + the indulgent look on his face in the second gif got me thinking.
what if Guy Dexter has an offscreen long-term partner? I know it’s a bit early for the real golden age of cinema, and I’ll admit that era isn’t my forte, but the idea of a gay actor in this era whose image as a sex symbol is heavily pushed by the studio as a cover for his private life isn’t at all outrageous. the last movie introduced Thomas to a gay social scene, and it would actually be a great progression to have this one introduce him to a gay mentor figure who can model a long term relationship. and I actual do trust the writers to handle that in a sensitive way, as opposed to the monogamy/nonmonogamy thing which I know a lot of people are leery of.
In that context, the chest touch could actual be something totally different. For example… Thomas sharing a gift from his lover that he keeps in the inner pocket of his jacket, which he is too nervous to wear openly, and sometimes he thinks maybe things are a little hopeless and muddled and he should stop carrying it everywhere? And Guy Dexter responds with some sage advice, Love Conquers All, I’ve been there kid but check out this lighter my boyfriend gave me ten years ago that I always keep with me–you’ll get there. Little pat to the hidden love token in Thomas’s pocket, friendly smile as he leaves, and Thomas is left looking a little stunned at the possibility of a fragile relationship lasting that long?
Genuinely I have no idea where that scene is going and this is like the third or fourth scenario that’s come to mind lol. But I think if I had to put money down, it would be on this one.
On some days, Thomas honestly can’t stop marvelling how the most handsome man on the planet was out there waiting for him for thirty-five years, and he didn’t know.
The preparatory da (2019) rewatch is happening this coming saturday (april 9) at 16:00 to 18:00 BST! The stream will take place in the TBDS discord channel and you can join here:
Don’t worry if you can’t make it to the whole screening, me and other peeps will most likely be hanging out in the channel a bit before the movie starts and after the movie ends, so there’s plenty of time for screaming! And you’re welcome to chat in the channel anytime outside the rewatch ( ◜‿◝ )♡
Rosemary and Sixpence by Jolie Black (Downton Abbey | Barris)
Minutes pass, filled with nothing but tobacco smoke. But at least Richard doesn’t step back to blend in with the moonless night again. “I’ve hurt you, haven‘t I,” he says at length. “I thought there was no way to tell you without hurting you. So now I’ve hurt you by saying nothing.” His shoulders rise with a deep inhale, then fall again abruptly. “I keep hurting someone. It’s like a curse.”
“You said you could explain.“
“I said I could try.”
“Do you want to try?”
Richard huffs a wry laugh. “I owe you that, don’t you think?”
Wouldn’t it be SO neat if this scene in the new Downton movie
turned out to be the polar opposite of this moment from Season 3?
What if Thomas has finally completed the full journey from being an utter outcast, with no hope of ever being allowed to live and love who and how he wants, to being in a position so secure and solid and safe as to be able to say to a celebrated international movie star, “I’m flattered by your attention, sir, but I’m afraid I’m spoken for”.
I wish I could tell you what this particular conversation was about, but I’m afraid I wasn’t there. I would guess how it ended, but someone tells me Tumblr has a policy against adult content.
(A Barris microfic, born from a discussion on the Thomas Barrow Discord about how Richard Ellis would have experienced the death of his employer. Pictures of Max Brown as always stolen and Downtonised from the Sister Boniface Mysteries.)
The night of January 20th 1936 was the longest night of Richard’s life. The worst thing about it was the waiting. Everyone kept saying that it couldn’t be long now, but they’d been saying it for days, and sometimes it seemed that they’d all be suspended in limbo forever, walking on tip-toe, talking only in hushed voices, while the inevitable was refusing to become reality.
Strangely enough, when it did happen in the end, it took a long time to sink in. There was suddenly so much to do, but Richard could barely make himself move.
Miller was no help at all. He crumbled, dissolving in tears, and kept muttering about some kind of disagreement he’d overheard between the King’s physician and the nurse that Richard couldn’t make head nor tail of. He didn’t try; he had his work cut out for him just keeping the man upright.
Richard sleepwalked through the week that followed. And once the funeral was over, he fled to Downton like a homing bird. As soon as he was on the train, his exhaustion carried him off to sleep for real, and he nearly missed his stop. It was late when he got to the house, but they were taking their time upstairs and Thomas wasn‘t down yet. Mrs Hughes put Richard in the servants‘ hall and went to see about tea and biscuits, and he barely remembered to thank her. “Poor man, he’s not himself,” Richard heard her say to Mrs Patmore in the kitchen passage, “but I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised.”
Looking down, Richard knew what she meant, dishevelled as he was. But he barely had time to straighten his tie and fix his hair before Thomas arrived after all. There he stood in the doorway, a longing in his eyes that made Richard’s heart ache, and the very first thing he said was, “I hope you’ve come to stay for good this time.”
For a moment, Richard was lost for words. They’d talked about it in theory before, of course, discussed it as an option. But in his mind, he hadn’t yet moved from loss to gain, hadn’t fully committed himself even to the idea that this, now, would be the time to make the decision.
But then, what else was he waiting for. “Yes, I have,” he replied, and it might just as well have been “Yes, I will.”
