If you love the grand manners and elegant drama of classic British period pieces but also love to laugh, Fackham Hall has arrived for you. This new movie, which opened in U.S. theaters on December 5, 2025, takes everything audiences adore about shows like Downton Abbey and Upstairs Downstairs and flips it into a hilarious spoof. It combines the look of a serious historical drama with the wild, joke-a-minute spirit of classic comedies like Airplane! and Monty Python. The story follows a charming pickpocket who accidentally gets a job at a grand English manor in the 1930s, leading to forbidden romance, a sudden murder, and total comedic chaos.
The Story Behind the Spoof
The film follows Eric Noone (played by Ben Radcliffe), an orphan and pickpocket who shows up at the massive Fackham Hall estate. By mistake, he is hired as a new member of the house staff. He quickly catches the eye of Rose Davenport (Thomasin McKenzie), the thoughtful daughter of the manor’s owners. Their growing romance breaks every strict social rule of the time.
The situation gets even more complicated when Rose’s flighty younger sister, Poppy (Emma Laird), runs away from her planned marriage to their awkward cousin, Archibald (Tom Felton). This forces Rose into the role of backup bride to save the family’s fortunes. Just as this drama unfolds, a murder occurs on the estate, and Eric finds himself framed for the crime. The movie then twists into a parody of Agatha Christie mysteries, complete with an eccentric inspector trying to solve the case.
A Cast That Commits to the Comedy
A major strength of Fackham Hall is its cast of accomplished actors who play their ridiculous roles with complete seriousness. Damian Lewis is a standout as the dim-witted Lord Davenport, a man so pampered he relies on his servants for everything. Katherine Waterston plays his proper wife, Lady Davenport, with a perfectly straight face. The central romance is sold by the winning chemistry between Thomasin McKenzie and Ben Radcliffe, who throw themselves into the physical comedy of their characters’ class-defying love.
The supporting cast is full of familiar faces adding to the fun. Comedian Jimmy Carr, who also co-wrote the film, appears as a vicar whose sermons are constantly ruined by bad punctuation. Veteran actress Sue Johnston plays the formidable Great Aunt Bonaparte, and the legendary Hayley Mills provides the film’s narration.
“The effort put into bringing to life the bustling fictional manorโฆ is remarkable given that weโre talking about a film that thrives on bathroom humor.” โ From a review noting the film’s high-quality production design.
A Mountain of Jokes in a Manor House
The filmmakers have described Fackham Hall as a “spoof that crosses Downton Abbey with Airplane! and Monty Python”. This means the comedy comes fast and in many forms. Reviews report the movie crams in nearly 280 jokes across its 97-minute runtime. The humor ranges from clever wordplay and visual puns in the background to more obvious slapstick and bodily function gags.
Some jokes are sharp satires of aristocratic life and the rigid class system. Others are pure, silly fun, like a hunting party where a shot causes a deer to fall impossibly from the sky or the running gag where the estate’s name, when said with a certain accent, sounds like a rude phrase. Not every joke lands for every viewer, but with so many attempts, the film aims to have something for everyone.
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Why the Film Looks So Good
For a comedy that doesn’t take itself seriously, a surprising amount of care went into making Fackham Hall look authentic. The movie was filmed at a real ancestral home in Liverpool, providing the perfect grand backdrop. The costumes, sets, and cinematography are crafted with the same detail as a straight-laced period drama. This serious commitment to the visual style makes the absurd events happening within that world even funnier.
Director Jim O’Hanlon ensured the production values were high, and the cast played their roles without winking at the camera. This “commitment to the bit” is what allows the spoof to work, grounding the madness in a world that feels real.
Early Reactions and Where to Watch
Early reactions to Fackham Hall highlight it as a fun, communal movie experience. Some viewers have called it a future “comfy classic comedy” that is “endlessly quotable”. The film is rated R and is playing exclusively in theaters. It was released in the United States on December 5, 2025, and is scheduled to open in the United Kingdom on December 12, 2025.
The movie arrives at a time when the period drama genre remains popular, with other major historical series like Outlander: Blood of My Blood and Chief of War also on the way in 2025. Fackham Hall offers a different takeโone that lovingly pokes fun at the genre’s traditions while delivering a rapid-fire comedy experience.
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