The prospect of opening up Downton Abbey to the public might shock the fictional Lord Grantham, even if ticket sales could help subsidize the house’s upkeep. In real life, however, the house at which the popular TV show is filmed does allow commoners to traipse through. As the house’s current resident, Lady Carnarvon, recently told LIFE Books, Highclere Castle has been open to the public since the 1980s, when an exhibition of Egyptian artifacts went on display.