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"New pictures from Downton Abbey&amp;#039;s Christmas special have been unveiled by ITV. Featuring fresh shots of Hollywood star Paul Giamatti&amp;#039;s guest role and further clues about the plot for the festive edition of the period drama, the snaps are expected to excite fans of the show.  At the heart of this year&amp;#039;s Christmas episode will be Lady Rose&amp;#039;s &amp;#039;coming out&amp;#039;, where she is presented at Buckingham Palace. Not wanting to miss out on the occasion Martha Levinson (Shirley MacLaine) returns, bringing her New York playboy son Harold (Giamatti) with her. Inevitably, the duo make quite the impact on London&amp;#039;s high society.  Elsewhere, Isobel finds herself being chased by an admirer, Daisy has &amp;quot;an unexpected invitation&amp;quot; and Carson treats his staff to a &amp;quot;special day out&amp;quot;. The episode, which was filmed at Lancaster House and other spectacular locations, will also feature a storyline surrounding a royal scandal that the Crawleys are implicated in. Cast regulars Maggie Smith, Hugh Bonneville, Michelle Dockery, Elizabeth McGovern, Jim Carter, Penelope Wilton, Phyllis Logan, Samantha Bond, Laura Carmichael, Lily James, Allen Leech, Brendan Coyle and Joanne Froggatt will all return for the episode.  Familiar faces Tom Cullen, Julian Ovenden, Daisy Lewis, Patrick Kennedy, Tim Drewe and Douglas Reith will also be back, continuing stories from the end of series four. Newcomers for the Christmas special include Poppy Drayton, Oliver Dimsdale who plays the Prince of Wales, Janet Montgomery, Guy Williams playing King George V and Michael Benz as Harold Levinson&amp;#039;s valet, Ethan.          Downton Abbey&amp;#039;s two-hour festive special airs on Christmas Day at 8.30pm. Downton was commissioned for a fifth series earlier this year, following more ratings success for its fourth run. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/downton-abbey/news/a536607/downton-abbey-christmas-special-new-preview-pictures/>