Dame Kiri Te Kanawa set for Downton Abbey appearance

4 March 2013, 10:47

The fourth season of Downton Abbey will feature a cameo appearance from Kiwi soprano Dame Kiri Te Kanawa.

Dame Kiri Te Kanawa will make a brief appearance in the forthcoming fourth series of popular costume drama Downton Abbey, due to air later this year. It is the first time the singer will have appeared in a television drama.

Her character will be an opera singer and house guest at Downton, and she will also sing as part of the episode.

A wealth of new characters will also be joining the programme, including roles for actors Harriet Walter and former EastEnder Nigel Harman, as well as the return of US actress Shirley MacLaine.

The enduring TV show recently shocked its audiences with it Christmas special, when Matthew Crawley was killed off in a car accident on his way home from the birth of his child with Lady Mary Crawley.