Downton Abbey, Series Three (1920-1921)

Lady Edith Crawley:
I'm sorry if this is inconvenient.

Michael Gregson:
It's unexpected, not inconvenient.

Lady Edith Crawley:
I suppose I'd better just say it.

Michael Gregson:
Please do.

Lady Edith Crawley:
I had the impression On my last visit, that you were flirting, giving signs that you found me attractive. If I'm wrong, then I apologize.

Michael Gregson:
You're not wrong.

Lady Edith Crawley:
But since then I have discovered that you are, in fact, married.

Michael Gregson:
Yes.

Lady Edith Crawley:
I'm afraid I find the idea of a married man flirting with me wholly repugnant. So you see, I must hand in my resignation at once.

Michael Gregson:
No. It's true, I am married, but I hope you'll allow me to explain.

Lady Edith Crawley:
Explain what? I am familiar with the institution of marriage.

Michael Gregson:
Yes, but not with this one. My wife is in an asylum and she has been for some years. Lizzie was a wonderful person, and I loved her very much. Took me a long time to accept that the woman I knew was gone and wouldn't be coming back.

Lady Edith Crawley:
Then why haven't you got a divorce?

Michael Gregson:
I can't. A lunatic is not deemed responsible. She's neither the guilty nor the innocent party. It means that I'm tied for the rest of my life to a...a madwoman who doesn't even know me.