William Mason

William is one of Downton's footmen, a country boy still finding his footing in the rigid hierarchy below stairs. Earnest and a little awkward, he's quick to blush, quicker to take offense on behalf of the family he serves, and openly smitten with Daisy, the kitchen maid who barely notices him.

Thomas Howes plays him without a trace of cynicism, which makes William the emotional barometer of the servants' hall — his decency is never ironic, just plain. Amid the sharper tongues and schemes around him, his unguarded loyalty and quiet longing give the show a gentleness it needs.