Downton Abbey's executive producer has claimed the show will be better now Matthew Crawley has died. We can't say we entirely agree with that statement.

The untimely death, yep I'm going to be a little dramatic here, of Matthew, played by Dan Stevens, has given 'dramatic rocket fuel' to the drama's fourth series, says executive producer Gareth Neame. T'here's nothing better that could have happened than that twist,' he said. 'Mary Crawley's story is far more interesting now, and the dynamics of the show are far more interesting - that she has to rebuild her life.'

He went onto say he had no concerns that the exit of Dan Stevens will impact on the show's popularity and insisted it has just opened up 'endless possibilities'.'Drama has endless possibilities, and the thing that looks like the worst that can happen, if you look at it in a completely different way, you suddenly realise that it's the best thing that can happen to you'.

However, all is not lost we do have high hopes for this series. Brendan Coyle, who plays Bates, recently said that this series is the best yet. Paul Giamatti was recently added to the cast for this series alongside a whole host of new faces Tom Cullen, Nigel Harman, Julian Ovenden and Gary Carr, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Joanna David and Dame Harriet Walter. The ITV period drama is due to air in late 2013.