‘Downton Abbey’ season 4 debate: Should [spoiler] also have a new love interest?

(Warning: the following contains spoilers for “Downton Abbey” season 3, and thus should not be read unless you have checked out the series in its entirely. Heck, you can go and buy the full disc set now on DVD and Blu-Ray.)

Over the past couple of weeks, we have talked fairly extensively about how Michelle Dockery’s Lady Mary is going to be doing just about everything she can to move on from the death of Matthew during season 4. In addition to that, we’ve also learned that Tom Branson (Allen Leech) is probably going to be waiting for quite a while until he tries to fall in love again.

So where, dear friends, does this leave poor Mrs. Patmore? Lesley Nicol’s character is an undisputed fan favorite, and for a few fleeting minutes during the season 3 Christmas special it felt almost as though she was going to have an opportunity to truly be a Mrs. yet again. Unfortunately, it turned out that she was really just being used and conned, and in the second-saddest moment of this lengthy episode, she realized that her heart had been completely broken.

Is it possible that we could see Mrs. Patmore find love again? It is, but we do not imagine that it will be a priority. For one, she is not a character as major as either Mary or Tom at the moment, and she is likely also going to be wary suitors in the near future just as Manti Te’o is probably never going to sign up for Match.com. Ultimately, we see this as a season 5 storyline more so than a season 4 … which is probably going to revolve around how the show’s widow and widower each manage to move on with their respective lives.

Do you see Mrs. Patmore having a chance at love on “Downton Abbey” again soon; and if so, what sort of character do you want to see her end up with? If you want to read some more scoop about Lady Mary per Dockery herself, you can do so over here.

Photo: ITV