Tom Branson always lived between worlds in Downton Abbey and his love interests were about as varied as his movements between social circles.
As the one-time chauffeur turned member of Downton Abbey’s upper crust through marriage, Tom Branson has had his share of love highs and love lows. His choice of women, and sometimes the women that choose him, reflect his constantly shifting sense of social identity. Starting off as a firmly principled member of the working class at the outset of the series, Branson eventually marries Lady Sybil Crawley whom he loses during the birth of his daughter (Sybbie) in Season 3. He spends the remainder of the series with potentials floating in and out of frame, some with real potential and some who were… definitely something.
Lady Sybil Crawley
On paper, Lady Sybil and Branson seem like a perfect and intriguing match. She’s the rebellious and social-conscious youngest sister of the Crawley set, and he’s the socialist chauffeur who takes a shine to her new-age attitudes. All of the groundwork is laid for their courtship. And though writer Julian Fellowes has crafted some truly spectacular romances in Downton Abbey it always seemed like Sybil and Branson’s missed a beat. After many attempts to profess his love for her, she outwardly rejects him on more than one occasion.
It’s not until after she returns to her mundane life following World War I, where she served as a nurse at Downton, that she accepts Branson’s offer and attempts to run away with him. Their elopement is foiled, but the two eventually move on to experience a short-lived wedded bliss before her death from childbirth. Up until almost the moment of their marriage, the relationship appeared pretty one-sided with Branson being the obvious pursuer. In the end, the two aren’t seen together long enough on-screen as a couple to experience any real chemistry. Still, Branson goes on to cherish her memory for many years to come.
Edna Braithwaite
Edna Braithwaite enters the scene shortly following Sybil’s death. First, she’s a housemaid and later Lady Grantham’s lady’s maid after the abrupt exit of Lady Grantham’s former maid Sarah O’Brian. Edna is intense and sets her sights on Branson from their first meeting. Only it’s not clear as to whether she is truly interested in him or the station to which he has now risen in the Crawley household. She is ambitious and intent to be more than just a maid. She has a way of comforting Branson in his vulnerable state, but every kind word seems laced with a motive. It’s definitely hard to add Edna to the list of love interests for Branson, especially after a last-ditch attempt to trick him into thinking he got her pregnant (a plot foiled by the housekeeper, Mrs. Hughes). However, she remains a fleeting and hotly intense contender who left as quickly as she came.
Sarah Bunting
They say timing is everything. So could be said of schoolteacher and politically radical, Sarah Bunting. Making her first appearance in Season 4 of Downton Abbey, Sarah is much a female reflection of Branson pre-Sybil. She has strong opinions, states them aloud, and is unwavering in her convictions. She has a talent for getting on Lord Grantham’s nerves and had a habit of reminding Branson of his socialist roots.
Unlike her predecessor, Edna, Sarah shows a marked kindness to others and a genuine desire to help people rise above their station through education. She becomes a tutor to Downton’s assistant cook Daisy Mason prior to her final departure from the village upon taking a new teaching position in Lancashire. Before leaving, she shares a kiss with Tom expressing her love for him and wishing they’d met before “them” (the Crawleys). Tom laments that he felt she was forcing him to choose between his past and his present and they bid each other “goodbye” on a cordial note. Sadly, though they had shared values and attraction, Branson’s time with the Crawleys irrevocably shaped his character in another direction and their love simply could not be.
Laura Edmunds
There was barely so much as a hint at a potential spark between Branson and Lady Edith Crawley’s co-editor at The Sketch Laura Edmunds. When Edith inherited the magazine left to her by Michael Gregson, the father of her child, she was looking for a sharp female editor and hired Laura. Laura is laid back in the presence of the Crawley’s when she meets them in Season 6, Episode 7 and makes a thoroughly good impression.
She bonds with Branson for a moment over feeling a tad out of place in her profession as a woman and he implies he felt out of place when he first married into the Crawley family. We see a few more scenes with them exchanging flirtatious looks and cordial words. And when we leave her at the end of the series, it’s at Lady Edith’s wedding where she catches the bouquet. Branson is also in attendance and though they have an exchange or two it’s nothing beyond pleasantries. Fellowes may have been laying the groundwork for a future romance, but if he was the idea was quickly abandoned in the first Downton Abbey movie upon its premiere in 2019.
Lucy Smith
There is a genuine and marked affection almost from the beginning with Branson and Lucy Smith when her character appears in the 2019 film. She arrives at Downton during the King and Queen’s royal visit alongside Baroness Maud Bagshaw as her maid. It is later revealed that she is the Baroness’ secret daughter and will inherit an entire fortune.
Lucy is a gentle spirit and relates to Branson in the fact that she has had to straddle two social strata during her lifetime because of the circumstance of her birth. This is probably Tom’s shortest courtship, likely due to the nature of the film’s running time, but also the most fitting. Both Lucy and Tom have been thrust into positions where they have to tread a fine line between who they are as people and the position which they inhabit and they do so with a sweetness of understanding. The timing is right for them and the chemistry is clear. Lucy may be the best match for Tom and one well worth the wait.
