PBS has officially announced that the popular British costume drama, 'Downton Abbey', will be release on January 4 of next year in its fifth season.

The new season of the period drama will premiere in the UK on ITV in September this year, while it will be released in the US on Jan. 4, 2015.

As far as the character developments of the new series are concerned, Lesley Nichols, the actress who portrays Mrs. Patmore's character, recently revealed interesting details for the upcoming season. In a recent interview, she assured 'Downton Abbey' fans that they will not see any major characters dying in the new season.

Talking to the Daily Star on Sunday, Lesley Nichols said, "There aren't any plans for any big characters to die this year." The actress added, "There has been such a big fuss in the past, especially with Matthew Crawley."

"I think it would be very unwise to do any more deaths because the viewers don't like them," she revealed.

Meanwhile, PBS has also released the first photos of Downton Abbey's children - Miss Sybil Branson and Master George Crawley.

One photo features Miss Sybil Branson, daughter of the late Lady Sybil and Tom Branson (Allen Leach), to be portrayed by Fifi Hart, who is just 4-year-old. Another photo is of Master George Crawley, son of Lady Mary and the late Matthew Crawley, who is the heir apparent to the Earldom. On the other hand, three-year-old twins Oliver and Zac Barker will play the role of Master George.

PBS also released a trailer for the new season that shows Mr. Carson discussing the changes. The images shown in the teaser trailer features the perfectly manicured grounds of the grand abbey, suggesting the aristocratic way of keeping everything perfect. Nevertheless, Mr. Carson, who is the head of the staff at Downton Abbey, is of the view that something new is about to happen.

"I feel a shaking of the ground I stand on. The nature of life is not permanence but flux. Things are changing," he said.

Is it possible that this "change" is related to Lady Mary? In the previous season, Lord Gillingham (Tom Cullen) and Charles Blake (Julian Ovenden) battled for her heart, so will she finally make her choice between the two equally persuasive men?