Michelle Dockery on Dan Stevens Exit: 'Oh Crap, What's Going to Happen'

Members of the cast of Downton Abbey appeared at yesterday's TCA to screen new footage of the upcoming fourth season and talk about what's ahead for the show.

Michelle Dockery, who portrays Lady Mary on the historical drama, chatted with reporters about the departure of her TV husband, Dan Stevens in the third season finale. As fans of the show know all too well, Stevens' Matthew Crawley was the victim of a fatal car accident which aired just seconds before the show went off the air for a long hiatus.

When Downton returns to PBS in January, Mary will be faced with the prospect of raising her new-born daughter on her own. Commenting on learning the fate of her fictional husband last year, Dockery said, "my first reaction was 'oh crap, what is going to happen?' I thought 'where can the story go now,' we spent all this time having this on-off, will-they/won't-they relationship?"

However the actress put her faith in writer/creator Julian Fellowes who quickly proved that the old adage, 'the show must go on' applies to the British drama as well. "As much as I think it was sad to see Dan go, it opens up an opportunity for Julian to take the character in all new directions," she teased. She also revealed that romance will indeed be in the air for her recently widowed character, "she has more than one love interest...She's kind of slowly throughout the series coming back to real life."

Also at the event was Downton's Laura Carmichael who portrays the often downtrodden Edith, currently involved with a married newspaper editor. "Some people in life are lucky and some people aren't, and Edith is one of those who aren't," she reflects. "But I love the relationship with (the editor) because he's so different."

DOWNTON ABBEY returns to PBS on January 5th, 2014.

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