As to be expected, the standards for Lady Mary Crawley's new suitor on "Downton Abbey" are very high.
According to The Daily Mail, actors everywhere have been vying for the role of Mary's (Michelle Dockery) Season 4 boyfriend, but not one has passed the test.
"Some were too dark, some too blond, some too bland -- though a couple have been put on a shortlist that the producers and creative people will discuss," a source reportedly said. "The main criteria for him is that he should be posh -- and pretty."
Mary's boyfriend won't necessarily be a permanent "Downton" fixture, however. A source told The Mail that if he "gels" he could stick around, but otherwise Mary will be on the lookout for a new man. An American, perhaps?!
Lady Mary's new love interest became a necessity when her on-screen husband Dan Stevens announced his departure in December.
"From a personal point of view, I wanted a chance to do other things," Stevens told The Telegraph.“It is a very monopolising job. So there is a strange sense of liberation at the same time as great sadness because I am very, very fond of the show and always will be.”
"Downton Abbey" airs on Sundays at 9 p.m. EST on PBS.
