Downton Abbey fans were shocked on Christmas Day by the death of one of its most central characters, Matthew Crawley, just after his first son was born. Married to the eldest sister of the family, they were set to inherit the Downton estate. Without that security in the picture, but a new male heir in the frame (albeit an infant), the room for manoeuvre in terms of plot lines has broadened immensely. 

Producer Gareth Neame told E! that the change is, indeed, a good one.  "This is a lesson in something that seems like a really big loss in the moment [that] will actually turn into a great opportunity," he explains, "which it will also be for the show, to take a turn in a whole different direction." With Dan Stevens, who played Matthew Crawley, leaving the UK to pursue his career in the USA, there was very little else they could do with his character, and if the new direction the show takes us is good then the grief will have been worth it. 

Michelle Dockery's character Lady Mary Crawley is having to 'rebuild her life' after the death of her husband, but Dockery herself is going through a variety of changes as well, as the Daily Mail report, at the cost of around £25,000. 

Turning up to the Golden Globes ceremony, at which she was nominated for an award, in a stunning Alexandre Vauthier, she turned everyone's heads. Apparently, this is just the beginning of her 'make-over', which has the aim of pushing her further into the American spotlight for her career to follow Stevens'. Her transformation is all down to one of the best stylists anyone can get: Micaela Erlanger. "There's a lot of prep involved [before a big awards event]- we're talking weeks!" Erlanger said, "From talking to the designers, to getting in touch and reserving the best looks and getting the samples in and then sending the samples out, and swapping, and fittings - it's crazy."

Dockery's dress (chosen and ordered by Erlanger) is worth £4000, and the jewellery £300,000 - both were on loan, unsurprisingly. However, the £10k Erlanger charges seems to be worth it, as Dockery has been included in the Harper's Bazaar best dressed lists thanks to the gown. In other Hollywood news, she's just finished a movie with Liam Neeson called Non-Stop. Downton Abbey may be taking a new direction, but at this rate, Dockery's direction will simply be further and further away from Downton. 

Dockery also appeared in last year's Academy Award nominated film, Anna Karenina, alongside Keira Knightley: