The Dowager Countess is getting married to a certain young swimmer renowned for his tiny, tiny swimming trunks; Mrs Patmore, the cook, and Daisy, the kitchen maid, are competing in The Great British Bake Off; and Sarah, the lady’s maid, and Thomas, the footman, are taking part in the game show Pointless.

The Only Way is Downton is Downton Abbey as you’ve never seen it before – one actor, 36 characters, numerous popular culture references and a barrage of spot-on impressions that have won creator and star Luke Kempner fans such as Stephen Fry, Matt Lucas and Tom Jones.

Luke, 26, a trained actor and singer who has appeared in Les Misérables, Avenue Q and South Pacific in the West End, started putting videos of himself impersonating various characters from Downton Abbey up on YouTube in October 2012.

“When I was at the Guildford School of Acting, I used to take the mickey out of all the teachers,” Luke, who is from Horley in Surrey and now lives in Hornsey, remembers.

“I would do a ten-minute set of a story of all the teachers putting on the nativity. I knew I could do Mr Carson and Grantham, so I thought ‘Why don’t I do it all?’"

A producer called James Seabright saw Luke’s videos online and contacted him in January last year, saying he’d love to put Luke and his impressions into a stage show – and that summer Luke took The Only Way is Downton to Edinburgh and the West End and is now touring the UK with it, and talks are already under way to take it to America, Canada and Australia.

“It’s very exciting, it’s unbelievable, the whole thing is brilliant,” says Luke. “The show is a celebration of Downton – it takes the mickey out of it but in an affectionate way. I love the programme, I love the characters, I love everything about it, and that’s why it’s so fun to play all the different characters.”

  • The Only Way is Downton is at Wyllyotts Theatre, Darkes Lane, Potters Bar on January 19 at 4pm. Afternoon tea will be served at 3.30pm. Details: 01707 645005, wyllyottstheatre.co.uk