Bring Downton back soon

TV bosses should not wait long to bring back Downton Abbey.

It was one of the best costume dramas on television for years.

There was a great mix of characters in the programme from the scheming lady’s maid Sarah O'Brien to the beautiful Cora Crawley.

Julian Fellowes, the writer of Downton Abbey, also introduced some good plot lines. One of my favourite was Isobel Crawley arguing with the Dowager Countess of Grantham for progress at the local hospital.

I also like it when Downton Abbey received its first telephone. The butler – Carson – did not know how to use the device, which is now seen as an everyday item in a household. He was shown practicing how to answer the phone.

The series was very well set and Downton Abbey was actually Highclere Castle in Berkshire, the home of the 8th Earl of Carnarvon. It was an earlier Carnarvon who funded Howard Carter’s expedition to find the tomb of Tutankhamun.

These dramas are also always filmed on perfect Spring days.

Nearly 11 million people were reported to have watched the last episode and the next series is due to appear on our screens next autumn.

Meanwhile, I could not believe someone would pay £56m for a vase.

This was a remarkable story and it was amazing that the vase, which had been used as a bookend, was worth so much money.