Servants' Hall

A Real Life Upstairs, Downstairs Romance

By: Margaret Powell

Narrated by: Susan Lyons

The sequel to New York Times best seller Below Stairs, Servants' Hall tells a gripping real-life tale reminiscent of Downton Abbey's Lady Sybil and Tom Branson.

Margaret Powell's Below Stairs became a sensation among listeners reveling in the luxury and subtle class warfare of Masterpiece Theatre's hit television series Downton Abbey. Now in the sequel Servants' Hall, Powell tells the true story of Rose, the under-parlourmaid to the Wardham Family at Redlands, who took a shocking step: She eloped with the family's only son, Mr. Gerald.

Going from rags to riches, Rose finds herself caught up in a maelstrom of gossip, incredulity and envy among her fellow servants. The reaction from upstairs was no better: Mr. Wardham, the master of the house, disdained the match so completely that he refused ever to have contact with the young couple again. Gerald and Rose marry, leave Redlands, and Powell looks on with envy, even as the marriage hits on bumpy times: "To us in the servants' hall, it was just like a fairy tale… How I wished I was in her shoes."

Once again bringing that lost world to life, Margaret Powell trains her pen and her gimlet eye on her "betters" in this next chapter from a life spent in service. Servants' Hall is Margaret Powell at her best - a warm, funny and sometimes hilarious memoir of life at a time when wealthy families ruled England.

©1979 Margaret Powell (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

Memoir of a Bygone Era

Fans of Upstairs Downstairs and Downton Abbey will recognize the inspiration behind the TV shows in Powell's memoirs. Margaret Powell had a gift for storytelling and wordsmithing reminiscent of James Herriot. Her books are populated with equally memorable and often humorous characters, and her tales can bring laugher and tears. This is not a Cinderella story with a fairytale ending. Rather, it is a sad story of true life and love. I prefer Mary Wells, who narrated Below Stairs. This narrator has a harsher, almost angry sounding, tone to her voice in comparison.

Good Story

What made the experience of listening to Servants' Hall the most enjoyable?

I enjoyed the reader and the story was charming. Sort of like Downton Abbey but definitely a different twist.

Similar to Below stairs

I liked the book and it was a worthy listen. However, the author has written 2 stories, this one and below stairs and there is a some rehash of the same content. I was rather disappointed to hear the same stuff twice. I did like the book, and there is some new stuff there, but, I'm not sure I would've bought it if I knew it was basically the same story..

It is worth listening to, especially if you like to read about the lives of servants but if you have already read Below Stairs, be warned there is repeat content in this one.

Mighty sore feet!

I loved the unvarnished story. The Cook, her friends, her employers, and all of their families are are sliced and diced with a dash of sweet and sour as the story revolves around the cook and her two friends all together, in service and out in the vitally changing class environment between WWI andWWII. How we complain! Don’t want to go back! Every time you hate your job and swear to quit - read this!

Engrossing and entertaining

This is a light, entertaining read for driving, house cleaning and the like. Dialogue moves smoothly and provides good depth to characters.