Next to the Thrilla in Manilla in 1975 which featured the third and final meeting between Muhammed Ali and Joe Frazier for the Heavyweight Championship of the World, Planet Earth has not had a day like this that they have been waiting for for almost 40 years.

While America, unfortunately, still needs to tap the breaks and continue to keep their finger on the ‘pause’ button while they await the January 4, 2015 PBS premiere of series 5 of Downton Abbey, there is joy in UK Mudville now that ITV has announced the transmission date for the premiere. Let the countdown begin to 21 September 2014 – a day that will forever be known as Downton Day 2014. What should cause excitement across Downton Abbey Nation no matter where you hang your hat is the fact that with ITV’s announcement comes the release of their first trailer for the premiere!
 

 
As you can see, while Dame Maggie Smith, Michelle Dockery, Jim Carter, Hugh Bonneville, Joanne Froggatt, Elizabeth McGovern, Rob James-Collier, Brendan Coyle, Laura Carmichael, Allen Leech, Lily James, Sophie Mcshera and Tom Cullen all return for series 5, there will also be a few welcome newcomers to Downton with the arrival of Richard E Grant and Anna Chancellor.

From the looks of things, series 5 will be drama, drama and…more drama. Al Jolson must not have been watching Downton Abbey when he spoke the first line that was ever ‘heard’ by the silent movie-going audience of the day which was “You ain’t heard nothin’ yet! otherwise, he would have definitely changed it to “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet! Looks like it’s going to be a good one. Must be the year of the fire what with Southfork burning on Dallas and all.