Community Corner

Looking for 'Downton Abbey' at the Library? You Might Be Waiting A While

See which DVDs have the longest wait lists at local libraries, and where you can get your fix.

Dying to see Downton Abbey's third season? Well, if you want to see it any time in the next three to six months, you might want to rent or buy it, rather than placing a hold at the library.

All three seasons of the British drama have more than 100 holds in the Montgomery County library system as of March 28, and Season 1 has 233 holds. For a list that long, the estimate is a three to six month waiting period, Narberth librarian Janine Waters said this week.

Wondering what else has a long wait list? 

Find out what's happening in Ardmore-Merion-Wynnewoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

  • Life of Pi, 337 holds
  • Downton Abbey Season 1, 233 holds
  • Lincoln, 220 holds
  • Downton Abbey Season 2, 188 holds
  • Les Miserables, 192 holds
  • Flight, 176 holds
  • Breaking Dawn Part 2, 112 holds
  • Downton Abbey Season 3, 113 holds

The Montgomery County Library and Information Consortium (MCLINC) is made up of 37 libraries, so those holds are county-wide, not just at Lower Merion and Narberth libraries.

Any Montgomery County cardholder can place a hold on a DVD through their online account and select a library where they'll pick it up once the movie is available.

Find out what's happening in Ardmore-Merion-Wynnewoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

If you're not as patient, your friendly neighborhood video store has all of these movies and shows in stock, Viva Video owner Miguel Gomez told Patch. Some of them do have wait lists, but rest assured: the lists are a lot shorter than the library's.

Rentals on new releases at Viva Video are $5 each for a three-day rental, but a standing 3-for-2 special means if you rent three movies, it comes out to $3.33 per movie.

And if you're anxious to see what the Crawleys are up to: each season of Downton Abbey is three discs that rent separately at Viva Video, Gomez said.  Season 1 is considered older, so it would be $4.50 per disc for a five day rental.


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