British critics harsher on the Downton Abbey spoof than the Amerians

Downton Abbey spoof Fackham Hall has opened in UK cinemas today, with a lukewarm response from British critics.

The parody – likened to Airplane! – was devised by Jimmy Carr with his brother, Patrick, who both wrote it with The  Dawson Brothers (Steve and Andrew with non-sibling Tim Inman) whose credits include the sitcom Big School with David Walliams.

And despite a star-studded cast include  Damian Lewis, Katherine Waterston, Thomasin McKenzie and Anna Maxwell Martin – plus Carr himself who plays a vicar – the critics have not been especially kind. 

The Daily Telegraph gave it just one star, saying the film ‘proved about as funny as a parking ticket’ adding: ‘It doesn’t look funny, isn’t cut funny, and doesn’t even sound funny, despite frequent deployment of Something Hilarious Is Happening background music.’

In a two-star review, The Times concluded: ‘The gag count is high, but the laugh count is not’, with reviewer Ed Potton commenting: ‘Silence reigned at my screening, although others may respond better to the groan-worthy silliness.'

The Guardian headlined its three-star review: ‘Downton Abbey spoof is fast, funny and throwaway’ with writer Adrian Horton saying: ‘The dialled-up silliness of a spoof can wear quickly, and the mileage on this particular variety runs out somewhere between sketch and feature.’

Metro also gave three-stars, saying: ‘Fackham Hall has everything, comedy-wise – silliness, sight gags, slapstick, play on words and shock tactics – but is at its best when it’s darkest or most truthful.’

The parody had a warmer response when it opened in the US last week, with the New York Times calling it  ‘a featherweight paean to the British period drama that seesaws between puerile and genuinely funny. Sending up costumey, upstairs-downstairs tropes, the movie seldom lets five seconds pass without a wisecrack, pratfall or sight gag, sometimes all three stacked on top of each other.’

The Seattle Times said  it was ‘a pleasantly silly diversion for Downton Abbey fans with a tolerance for raunchy sight gags and bad puns’, while The Daily Beast said: ‘With this spray-of-bullets approach, everyone has a laugh eventually.’

And Indiewire gave a gushing write-up, noting: ‘Fackham Hall delivers just over an hour and a half of nonstop gags in the form of puns, wordplay, bodily humor, and slapstick stunts. And yet, it also somehow finds time for a dizzying amount of story.’

And Screen Rant gushed that it was ‘a refreshing return to a style of physical, performance-based comedy woefully lacking in today's market…  so loaded with gags and in-jokes that it does exhaust itself, but only before picking up steam again in the film's blistering final act.’

Published: 12 Dec 2025