“I think it's hugely important to have a strong episode one; you can lose an audi…” — Jed Mercurio

Some shows do nosedive at the end, or some piece of content could become incredibly controversial and affect the way the show is seen.

I remember watching TV as a kid, and whenever there was some sort of jeopardy involving the hero, I could reassure myself that they were what I'd call a 'can't-die' character, so everything would be OK.

I've never reached the point where I was ready to abandon a series.

There's a classic medical aphorism: 'Listen to the patient; they're telling you the diagnosis.' Actually, a lot of patients are just telling you a lot of rubbish, and you have to stop them and ask the pertinent questions. But, yes, in both drama and medicine, isolated facts can accumulate to create the narrative.