as shocked as anyone when his old ally Miss O'Brien leaves Downton in the middle of the night. He comes to dislike the new nanny for the two young children of Downton, and refuses to pass on her instructions to other members of staff. He informs Lady Grantham that he suspects the new nanny may be mistreating the children in some way. This suspicion leads to Lady Grantham's discovering the nanny's cruelty to Sybbie Branson, resulting in her immediate sacking. Barrow then attempts to gain an ally in the form of Lady Grantham's new maid Edna, a maid fired from Downton following her attempt to seduce Tom Branson, by claiming that Edna's accidental damage to one of Lady Grantham's favourite garments was in fact due to Anna Bates. However, this alliance does not last very long, as Edna is fired after she successfully seduces Tom Branson but is foiled in her effort to blackmail him into marrying her. She insults Barrow's arrogance and manner, though he responds in kind, and she leaves Downton once again. Thomas is well aware that Lord Grantham and Carson are only keeping him on sufferance. When Barrow is set to be laid off, he attempts to find suitable employment and fails. He attempts suicide but is rescued by his friends. He eventually takes a position in a smaller household, but when Carson develops an illness, Barrow is invited back to Downton to become the new butler. Lenker states that the character is initially "a solid villain" but develops and "he gradually became one of the most beloved members of the Crawley family staff". Thomas was originally meant to be written out of the show at the end of the first series once he had had his "comeuppance". However, after James-Collier had filmed the first two episodes of the show the producers contacted his agent and asked if he would like to be optioned for the second and third series. Sarah O'Brien Sarah O'Brien (played by Siobhan Finneran), who is mainly known as Miss O'Brien by the other servants or just O'Brien by the family, was Lady Grantham's lady's maid, a post she has held since 1910. She is especially bitter and resentful towards most of the other servants, perhaps due to her family circumstances; the animosity is common knowledge, even for the Crawleys. She had one favourite brother who had shell shock and later died