'Downton Abbey' cast uses water bottle gaffe to help charity

LONDON, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- The cast of Downton Abbey poked fun of the production's mistake of including a plastic water bottle in an official cast photo by turning it into a way to make money for a charitable organization.

Photographers came under fire earlier this month when the official Season 5 cast photos were released and something a little historically inaccurate appeared in a shot of Lord Grantham (Hugh Bonneville) and his daughter, Lady Edith Crawley (Laura Carmichael.

On top of the fireplace mantle behind the two is a modern plastic water bottle.

Oh dear. Someone left a waterbottle in this press photo from @DowntonAbbey #PhotoFail pic.twitter.com/EdZxc8Xlj7

— Darren Bell (@darren_bell) August 14, 2014

The cast poked fun at the photo by releasing another photo of several cast members — in their modern clothing — all holding plastic water bottles and making goofy faces.

The photo was part of a promotion to encourage fans to donate to WaterAid, an international organization devoted to providing clean drinking water to those who need it.

"After seeing the reaction the picture caused earlier this week, the cast and crew came up with the idea of turning some of this attention towards an issue around water that really matters. They hope that by posing for this picture they will be able to raise awareness and amplify the work of international charity — WaterAid," an ITV spokesperson said in a release on the WaterAid website.

"It brought a really big smile to my face when the cast of Downton Abbey said that they wanted to support WaterAid's work," said Barbara Frost, chief executive of WaterAid. "How fantastic that the attention created over one water bottle ends up benefiting some of the world's poorest communities through access to safe, clean water today.