‘Downton Abbey’ season 3 scores another victory with [spoiler]

There are not necessarily that many shows out there that are as willing to embrace tragedy quite like “Downton Abbey,” and there are even fewer that manage to maintain their same audience as a result. (Spoiler alert ahead!) Sunday night’s new installment may have been the saddest in the show’s three-year history thanks to a certain tragic death of one Lady Sybil, but the viewership still amounted to an impressive audience.

Once the  numbers were figured in across the pond in the United Kingdom, the latest episode of the hit drama series scored a grand total of 9.5 million viewers, which was enough to not only top “Strictly Come Dancing” over on the BBC, but also “The X Factor” results show to finish as the country’s top program of the night before +1 figures were calculated a little bit later in the day. While the tendency for many American families is to record scripted fare in order to watch reality shows, it appears to at times be the opposite in the UK, as they +1 figures for the singing competition were far and away a larger percentage of its overall final audience than was the case for “Downton Abbey.”

Now that we are already nearing the end of season 3, the viewership is probably not going to any where but up. Not only do we have a few more exciting episodes worth watching, but there is talk of a Christmas special coming up later this year that may not have as much to do with the actual holiday as you would otherwise originally perceive.

Is “Downton Abbey” the show that in your mind, has to be watched live in order for it to be fully enjoyed?