At the dawn of the surprise-hit series Downton Abbey Mary Crawley has a momentary and tragic fling with a guest staying at her family’s estate. Opportunity presents in the form of the dashing Turkish envoy, Kemal Pamuk. Lust prevails, and her moral failure and the threat of its scandalous exposure form a good bit of the dramatic pulse that drives the story forward, particularly as it amplifies the romantic tension between Mary and cousin Matthew Crawley, the family heir.
In time Mary must — spoiler alert! — admit her wrong to Matthew, who then asks if she loved Pamuk. Mary dismisses the passion as if it didn’t matter. She answers that it was only lust or the need for excitement.
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