Time Crashers - Episode 3

Good morning and the Time Crashers are transported to 1913 and an Edwardian house party.  How will the celebrities handle Edwardian Etiquette?  Will it be like Downton Abbey?  Or will the Time Crashers be in for a rude awakening?  The run time for this episode is 46:12.

This time the Time Crashers are servants serving in a country house.  The boys are immediately disappointed to discover they are servants.  It is 1913 and World War I is just around the corner.  The elite are throwing up one last hurrah before the war and everything changes.  The Time Crashers are going to be preparing for a weekend shooting party.  Shooting parties demonstrated wealth and status.  Edwardians got together for a weekend of hunting, socializing, and showing off.

Each of the Time Crashers has a different status and each has a different guide to help them navigate the world.  Bottom of the pile is Zoe Smith and Olympian Greg Rutherford.  The downstairs staff is immediately greeted by the housekeeper and she oversees reviewing the rules and training for staff.  The housekeeper could sack a staff member with no reference.  I enjoyed seeing her thoughts on the staff.  From the looks of it, she will be commenting on the staff throughout the episode.

Kristie Alley and Keith Allen have more senior roles.  However, they still run afoul of the butler.  The butler was the highest-ranking member of staff.  He expects obedience and working to the highest standards.  Keith is the valet and Kristie is the ladies’ maid.  Both have a giggle over their guides. 

The staff members turn in for the night and wonder how they are going to handle their lives as Edwardian servants.  They wake up in the morning.  Greg is already at work clearing the chamber pots.  Greg wants to do a good job as the hall boy.  Zoe struggles with the morning routine and begins struggling with the work.  The housekeeper is not happy with Zoe’s efforts.  The footmen start preening in the morning.  Footmen were hired for their good looks and footmen, and the taller the better.

The hierarchy was strictly observed in the Edwardian household.  The housekeeper reminds them of the rules of the house.  The servants were to be addressed as William or Jane.  The servants were to be invisible as well.  Staff worked 80 hours per week with half a day off.  They got their news while ironing the masters’ newspapers.  After breakfast, everyone sets off to work.

The footmen are setting up a tent for an outdoor dinner.  However, setting up the tent and the table is going slowly for the men.  The tent is a bit of a challenge to put up.  Inside the maids are cleaning the house and prepare the reception rooms.  The maids are finding the corsets difficult to work in.  Fern struggles with keeping things cleaned up.  The housekeeper interrupts them to remind them that they needed to clean in silence.  Zoe refuses to pluck pheasants and is immediately dismissed without a reference.  The maids look at Zoe’s leaving and comment on it.  Being dismissed without a reference means she would never be able to find work again.

The work is done, and the servants are ready for the party.  The ladies serve tea to the mistress of the house and that does not go well.  Fern gets a ticking off.  The footmen are busy serving the shooting party outside.  How will the famous people handle life as Edwardian servants?  Will the shooting party go well?  Tune into the rest of the episode to find out about life in the Edwardian period.

After watching Manor House, I wondered how actors and famous people would handle the life of Edwardians.  It was not surprising to see them feeling overwhelmed by the experience.  The only person that was missing from this episode was Mr. Edgar, the butler from Edwardian Country House.  I would have enjoyed watching him handle those celebrities.  I also enjoy hearing the reflections everyone had on their experiences.  Overall it was a fairly good episode of the Time Crashers and one that could have been a little bit longer.  This would be one episode to show in the history classroom for a fun and frivolous day.