Below Stairs

The Classic Kitchen Maid’s Memoir That Inspired 'Upstairs, Downstairs' and 'Downton Abbey'

By: Margaret Powell

Narrated by: Mary Wells

Length: 5 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

Brilliantly evoking the long-vanished world of masters and servants portrayed in Downton Abbey and Upstairs, Downstairs, Margaret Powell’s classic memoir of her time in service, Below Stairs, is the remarkable true story of an indomitable woman who, though she served in the great houses of England, never stopped aiming high. Powell first arrived at the servants' entrance of one of those great houses in the 1920s. As a kitchen maid - the lowest of the low - she entered an entirely new world; one of stoves to be blacked, vegetables to be scrubbed, mistresses to be appeased, and bootlaces to be ironed. Work started at 5:30 am and went on until after dark. It was a far cry from her childhood on the beaches of Hove, where money and food were scarce, but warmth and laughter never were. Yet from the gentleman with a penchant for stroking the housemaids’ curlers, to raucous tea-dances with errand boys, to the heartbreaking story of Agnes the pregnant under-parlormaid, fired for being seduced by her mistress’s nephew, Margaret’s tales of her time in service are told with wit, warmth, and a sharp eye for the prejudices of her situation. Margaret Powell's true story of a life spent in service is a fascinating "downstairs" portrait of the glittering, long-gone worlds behind the closed doors of Downton Abbey and 165 Eaton Place.

©1968 Margaret Powell and Leigh Crutchley (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

Didn't expect this to be so funny!

Really fascinating glimpse of an era recently brought to life by Downton Abbey. Narrator was excellent. Story was well-told and I found myself laughing out loud at the author's dry, British humor.

lovely narrative about life in service

Loved the narration. Lively storytelling with wit & fast paced dialogue to keep you interested

Excellent Narration And Great Story

If you enjoy excellent narration and want to hear another example of such, then this book is most certainly for you! Mary Jane Wells does an outstanding job and really brings the book to life. At one point I thought that she had perhaps written in the book herself because she read it as if she really did live it, and that I think makes her a master of her craft.

The content of the book was also excellent and really gave me a better understanding of where the writers of Downton Abbey were able to get some of their ideas.

Overall: excellent!

Lovely

This is a collection of little stories from her life, there is no overarching storyline like you would find in a novel. But it’s real life. I love these kind of books, it’s like listening to your grandparents tell stories of their lives. The narrator was great too.

Very sweet story

As a fan of Call the Midwife and Downton Abbey, I thought I would give this book a try. I really enjoyed the honest story telling of the author. Nothing was sacred even in the prim and proper aristocratic households of England. It is also an encouraging story of not allowing your beginning in life dictate your future.

Wonderful!

Loved this book! Well written and absolutely fascinating. Even my teenagers would go quite still and stop talking to listen.

Very good insight into historical class based system

Very enlightening as to how those working class members truly saw themselves and their employers. I appreciated the small tidbits about her social life or moral restrictions.

She does seem angry a good deal throughout and that was a surprise. It should not have been, but it was.

Cooking and cleaning before the modern stoves etc

What attracted me to the book was the title saying it inspired "Upstairs, Downstairs" and "Downton Abby" . This is a story of a 14 year old off to work in service. Teenagers working was common in those years, the story took place just before WWI and after. Mary Wells did such a good job narrating and the book was written in a relaxed style I felt as if I was having a cup of tea with a friend, who was telling me about her first jobs. Up at 5:30 a.m. scrubbing and cleaning, light coal fires, and can you believe ironing bootlaces after shinning the shoes. From what she described I think houses must have been cleaner than today OR the coal heating made the constant cleaning a necessity. Having to cook everything from scratch, groceries delivered daily, (no refrigeration), making your own house cleaning solutions, no wonder they went to bed exhausted. Sure glad we have all our modern implements otherwise would never have time for anything but cleaning and cooking. The story is short, and written in a breezy manner that makes the ending come up way to fast. The book gives one a look into a way of life that is mostly gone after WWI.

Below Stairs was fabulous

You will love this! Funny and educational all in one. I absolutely recommend it to anyone who wants to learn about the period and what the class structure was all about while laughing all the way through.

Still fresh look at "Downstairs"

I had to laugh when this memoir was described as "for fans of Downton Abbey" and suchlike. Margaret Langley, who was born in 1907 and wrote this in 1968, was a bright girl who couldn't afford to take up her scholarship at higher school, had to go to work at 14 instead. Her only choice was domestic service and she didn't like it or her "Upstairs" employers. There was no socializing between classes and very little liking or respect, contrary to the books and TV shows. Margaret became a cook, the highest she could rise in service, and still was at the mercy of demanding skinflint employers. The book is full of anecdotes, some of which made me LOL. Margaret continued to read, to the surprise of even her nicest mistress (and she has sharp words for that too), and by the end of the book is close to her A levels, as the British gates to higher (university) education were called then, which she's proud of reaching in her 60s. And yet she managed to enjoy life, to achieve her aim of marriage and escape from service outside the home until the WW II. She maintained a proud, openly feminist attitude toward her place in the class system but had the realism to know it wasn't likely to change, although she expected things to go on improving. I wonder if she saw Margaret Thatcher bulldoze many of the advances that had occurred. This book is funny and smart, but don't expect the rosy sentiments of shows like "Downton Abbey" even though you may enjoy this even more. Good performance too.