Fans welcomed back to Downton with first-look images from A New Era

Hugh Bonneville stars as Robert Grantham and Michelle Dockery as Lady Mary (Ben Blackall/Focus Features/PA)

Fans have been offered a first look at the highly-anticipated sequel to the Downton Abbey film.

Hugh Bonneville, who stars as Robert Grantham, and Michelle Dockery, who returns as Lady Mary, are pictured on the stairs of the stately home.