The acting is so wooden and the dialog is cliched and inauthentic for the time period ("I like her energy"). Each character is just a stereotype (the spinster, the snob, the social climber, the rebel, the closeted gay man). It is completely the cringe worthy. And because the storyline is so unimaginative, it is boring. I love Downton Abbey so this was even more of a disappointment. The costumes are beautiful - that is the only positive.