‘Downton Abbey’ season 3: It pays to be Michelle Obama

There are a number of benefits to being the First Lady of the United States, and apparently, one of them is getting the opportunity to watch “Downton Abbey” season 3 before anyone else in your country can.

For months now, American fans of the show have been wary of what they see online in fear of learning about the whole season before its premiere on PBS on Sunday, January 6, but if you believe the latest tabloid reports that are surfacing in the UK, it appears as though Michelle Obama gets to be part of the secret that many British viewers are keeping: just how good (and how shocking) the past eight episodes have been.

Here is what a source for ITV (who broadcasts the series in its home country) had to say (at least according to The Sun) about not only Obama’s love for the series, but how the network and her supposedly made an arrangement so that she would not have to wait to watch the show for a few more months:

“We know it’s very popular in America as it’s so quintessentially British. We’d heard the Obamas liked to watch it but we were very surprised when someone from the First Lady’s office got in touch asking for the series.

“They were very polite and we were more than happy to sort out some DVDs for them to send over. Obviously we hope they keep the spoilers to themselves as our US fans may not know about… well, you know what!”

Now, is this report really true? The Obamas have yet to speak out about it, but Michelle and the President have professed to be avid TV watchers in the past during their down time. President Obama has already said that “Homeland” is his favorite series, and Michelle frequently tunes in to “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” as a guilty pleasure.

If this report is true, do you think that this is something that ITV and Julian Fellowes has to be rather pleased about?