Customer Reviews

Upstairs, Downstairs - Collector's Edition Megaset (The Complete Series plus Thomas and Sarah)

5 star:		(75)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I have no idea why some of the reviewers are complaining about the audio and video quality of these DVDs. Because of those reviews I almost did not buy this set. That would have been a grave error. I suppose, if you are some type of audio/video expert you might find a few reasons to complain, but this is a 35 year old British TV show. If you expect special effects, buy Star Wars, not Upstairs Downstairs. The quality of the audio and video was quite acceptable and certainly better than when it originally aired. (It should also be remembered that the first season was filmed during a technicians strike.)

As for the show itself, Upstairs Downstairs is one of the greatest TV shows ever filmed. It is an extremely entertaining examination of the British class system from 1900 to 1930 (particularly what happened to it as a result of WWI). After you have watched a couple of shows, you will have difficulty turning them off.

It is no exaggeration to say that this classic early 70's British period drama is one of the all-time best series of its sort ever produced. With sixty-eight 50-minute episodes, the series covers a time span of nearly 30 years (from early Edwardian England in 1903, through the horrors of the First World War, and on into the Roaring 20s, finally concluding with 1929's stock market crash). The setting is the household of the Bellamy family at 165 Eaton Place, London. Upstairs live Richard Bellamy, MP, and his beautiful, aristocratic wife, Lady Margery. The Bellamys have two adult children, Captain James and Elizabeth, who come and go much like a recurring motif (though recurring nightmare might be more appropriate, for they are the source of much grief (albeit unintended) for their society parents). I don't wish to give the storylines, scandals and surprises away. Suffice it to say that as the series progress, there are lovers, marriages, births and deaths (not to mention the arrival of a beautiful young niece) which impact on the relationships and alter the composition of the group above stairs.

Downstairs we are privy to the lives of the servants in the Bellamy household. First and foremost is the devout, inflexible and regimental head butler, Angus Hudson, the staff overlord. Then there is the curmudgeonly but good-hearted cook, Mrs. Bridges. Other memorable characters include the efficient but sheltered head house/parlour maid, Rose Buck; the religious but simple footman, Alfred; his successor, the good-natured Edward, who has an eye for the female staff; the not-overly-bright scullery maid, Emily, and her successor and intellectual equal, Ruby; and Lady Margery's prim and snobbish lady's maid, Miss Roberts. Of course, one simply cannot forget the sassy, vivacious new under house/parlour maid, Sarah (Pauline Collins), who is a real dreamer and schemer and who, like a bad penny, turns up on the Bellamys' doorstep periodically during the first two series, or the new capable-but-just-as-conniving chauffeur, Thomas (Collins' real-life husband, John Alderton), who is nobody's fool! Like the family upstairs, the downstairs "family" too has its share of comings and goings, what with lovers, marriages, deaths, hirings, and firings.

This boxed set includes the 1979 spin-off series entitled Thomas and Sarah (thirteen 50-minute episodes), which chronicles the adventures and misadventures of those two memorable miscreants after they leave the Bellamy's employ. Unlike Upstairs Downstairs, which is fairly high drama infused with a spattering comic relief here and there, Thomas and Sarah is very much a comedy-drama. With Sarah's penchant for foreign accents and tale-telling and the conniving and entrepreneurial spirit that both characters embody, the stage is set for some thoroughly enjoyable vignettes. Most of the episodes involve the couple trying their hands (and luck) at something new--like running a match-making agency, working in a boys' school, working as magicians, and so on. For all their efforts, however, they always seem to find themselves skint--and thus the need for another enterprise (and hence another enjoyable episode!). The only thing less than satisfactory is the "conclusion" of the final episode, which left me wondering whether or not a second series was at least anticipated. But that's is a minor quibble, for this is a series to be watched for the sheer enjoyment of the journey.

One final dvd bonus is the enjoyable and informative 50-minute 25th Anniversary Special, which was produced around 1998 and includes remembrances by many of the surviving actors (including James, Elizabeth, Rose, Edward, Daisy, and Ruby).

In conclusion, Upstairs Downstairs is quite simply an outstanding dramatic series. It is compelling, captivating, and often thought-provoking; and if you enjoy a dramatic series with lots of "goings on," scandal, and so forth, you'll enjoy it all the more! The inclusion of Thomas and Sarah is a delightful, light-hearted, entertaining bonus, and I highly, HIGHLY recommend this boxed set to all fans of the very best in British period drama.

It goes without saying that "Upstairs/Downstairs" is a brilliant, entertaining series well worth the owning. When Amazon offered the Collector's Edition Megaset on a great sale, I couldn't pass it up. I didn't really remember the series well, but I knew I very much wanted to see it. Like others, I read the discouraging reviews about the A&E Home Video transfer, but I thought, I'm not really that picky and it's probably not all that bad. Well, I am not that picky; I don't care about things being in HD or looking like a "Harry Potter" movie. That said, I want readers to know, I was very, very disappointed in the visual and sound quality of A&Es Megaset. So much so, I had given thought to sending this set back and exchanging it for another in hopes that it might be better. But first I did some research. I googled "Why are the DVDs of A&E's Upstairs/Downstairs so bad?" and found an informative website which had a page on the US A&E version. It made it clear that A&E Home Video had used old copies of the episodes for their remastering instead of getting new ones from the UK, undoubted a cost saving measure on their part. As someone who has purchased many of these wonderful, older British series, I can tell you that the A&E version of the Joan Hickson "Miss Marple"s are not terribly good either, although they are certainly better than these sorry things. I have only taken a quick look at the two Thomas & Sarah DVDs and they do appear to be somewhat better than Upstairs/Downstairs. Hopefully, someday another company will release a quality set of the original series.

Before buying this set I would strongly encourage you to use a web search tool for '"Upstairs, Downstairs" US DVD' and see for yourself just how bad the picture is on these DVDs. I can confirm that these DVDs are identical to the first US release of "Upstairs, Downstairs", but simply repackaged and repriced lower. I own over 400 DVDs, have rented many more than that, and have never seen a worse transfer to DVD. If you must own this show on DVD buy a region-free DVD player and get one of the European sets. Not deserving of 1 star, but rather a square. Shameful. Avoid.

I wish I could give it a hundred stars, this Upstairs, Downstairs is absolute magic. A story about the Bellamy family and their servants, it goes beyond any kind of play or soap (quite frankly, I think it merged qualities of both quite successfully)--but it draws you INTO the family and you feel like you actually become a PART of the whole thing. Troubles? Sure always troubles with both the wealthy family and troubles with the servants. But even in real life, it always has trouble, doesn't it. Frequently very touching; sometimes even shocking; it's GREAT! I LOVE THESE DVDs! I don't give a flip what other people say about the alleged picture and sound quality "troubles". I say, honestly, just WHERE are these alleged "toubles"--remember it was made for television; in fact during some of the early season you have some black and white episodes due to some kind of technical crew strike or whatever. But it's just a few shows but WHO CARES it's all great.


I found nothing wrong with either the quality of the DVDs picture and sound. I thought the overall picture/sound is great.

BIG WARNING: ONCE YOU START WATCHING THESE DVDS BEFORE YOU KNOW IT YOU ARE ***hooked*** AND I MEAN YOU CAN'T STOP WATCHING THESE. REMEMBER I WARNED YOU.

Another great thing about Upstairs, Downstairs, is that you can watch it again and again and never get tired of it.

If you are not used to British television, well, the first disk you have to get used to the accent...but it's not hard--TRUST ME IN NO TIME YOU WILL NOT EVEN NOTICE THE ACCENT.

I really love this series. It's a real treasure.

I can't say I wasn't warned. Other reviewers of this set have remarked on the poor picture quality. However, since I had been re-watching this series on taped VHS cassettes from a PBS broadcast, I assumed that the DVDs would be an improvement. Wrong. I'm sorry I threw away my tapes. I am very disappointed that A&E would have issued this beloved series on such poor quality DVDs.

One of the very best TV dramas ever made, enjoyment of it is almost totally ruined by appalling picture and sound quality. I have no idea what "digitally remastered" means, if this is the result. It's a disgrace to charge almost $250 for a product this inferior. I actually thought my copy was a bootleg, made by some bloke pointing a digital camera at a TV screen -- it's that awful. There is also a constant "shadow" track on the audio, which sounds as if someone has a radio on in the background. Just disgraceful. Avoid.

I can't help myself, I just love this series. I missed it the first go round in the 70's on PBS due to "life events" that were going on for me, but it is such a stellar series -- and it is so affordable in the "Complete Series" package by A&E that I have to tell you that despite the poor poor quality of the DVD, the stories are too fantastic to not view and own if you are on a budget. I do notice the DVD "panning" or "slowing down" or even the fuzzy notation for the next reel in the upper right corner, but I just acknak it and let it go, and let the story and character draw me in and in and in and on and on and....

As I type this out, PBS' Masterpiece Theater is about to celebrate its 35th birthday making it the longest (if not 1 of the longest) prime time series on their network. Suffice it to say it is wonderful to see if the best of shows of the series (which we inherited from such British networks as BBC, Granada, etc.) showing up on DVD labels like A&E, Acorn and even their own label. The one series that a lot of people clamour about is this one: Upstairs Downstairs: The life of the Bellamy family and their servants in a story spanning the early decades of the 20th Century. When this series first hit DVD, it was released in 5 sets of 4 discs, and then a megaset of all 20, followed by the 4 disc set of its spinoff (not sure it was seen here) Thomas & Sarah (all of which are still available). Now for the first time all 24 discs comprising both series are in 1 REALLY MEGA set. I will now finally get to see in its entirety a series that I have heard nothing but rave reviews about, plus its spinoff and can watch em uncut and uninterrupted all I want. Nice way to start the new year with this set in my home in time for it's 35th anniversary. Buy THIS set (as opposed to the other 20 disc mega set) and get ready for the most popular series we ever inherited from da British.

Before I begin my review of the product, I would like to share something I think UpDown fans will chuckle at:

The other day I was watching an UpDown episode in which Miss Elizabeth joins the suffragettes and Rose is sent to Holloway prison. In one scene, one of the other jailed suffragettes attacks Rose, who falls against the wall. I noticed how the wall moved (quite a bit); it looked to be made out of cardboard!

The 25 year Anniversary Special is very well done and very interesting.

Now for the review:

I would assume that some reading this have the series on VHS and want to upgrade to DVD. My advice is: DON'T. These DVDs were not remastered at all; I don't care what the description says. The DVD set is no better than the VHS. The beginning intro (the music and cartoons from Punch magazine) is cut off in several episodes. There are numerous episodes where the tape (thus the DVD) jumped and the picture is momentarily distorted. Images are fuzzy and the colors are off.

My last advice is if you can wait, wait a couple of years when it is the 40th anniversary of the series. No doubt remastered digital DVDs will be produced at that time as most films are on anniversaries.

PBS will offer a few NEW episodes of "UpDown" in April 2011; Jean Marsh reprises the role of Rose Buck working for the new family at Eaton Place. I have heard rumors that new episodes are already being filmed, so popular was the new series.

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