Note: The following article contains spoilers for Upstart Crow's series 3 finale.
The third series of Ben Elton's BBC Two comedy Upstart Crow has ended on an unexpectedly tragic note.
The sitcom stars David Mitchell as playwright William Shakespeare, whose life story is usually played for laughs.
But much like his plays, Shakespeare's real life contained tragedy as well as comedy, and the series three finale played it out beautifully.
The episode centred around Will trying to win a theatre award, while his young son Hamnet prepared for his confirmation.
But before Will returned from the ceremony, Hamnet tragically died – leading the writer to reflect on the existence of God.
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The death of Hamnet is cited by Shakespeare scholars as a turning point in the writer's life, after which his work started to include more tragedies.
Viewers took to Twitter to praise the poignant ending of the episode and congratulate the cast, especially Liza Tarbuck, who plays Will's wife Anne Hathaway.
Others drew comparisons between the episode and the ending of another Elton sitcom, Blackadder Goes Forth.
The 1989 series was set in the trenches of the First World War, where the setting was mostly used for comedic purposes.
But the series' final scene became one of the most memorable in British television history, as the main characters went 'over the top' to meet their tragic fate.
Upstart Crow will return to BBC Two later this year for a Christmas special.
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Stephanie is a freelance news writer, who previously covered WWE and AEW for Digital Spy.
After graduating with a degree in history from Queen Mary University, London, she studied journalism at Birkbeck University.
Outside of her work at Digital Spy, she writes about pop culture, with a special focus towards Irish media and how it intersects with politics.
You can read more of her work on her Substack page.
