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Ted Lasso episode 409 ends with "In Memory of Anthony Head" card

Season 4's penultimate episode, "Mae Rides the Bus", closed with a tribute card to Anthony Head, who died on June 1 aged 72. The same episode killed off the pub owner Mae Green.

5 outlets · 1L · 3C · 1R First reported Account updated

Updated (version 2). New coverage since the last version from /Film, GB News. Previously: “Ted Lasso episode 409 ends with tribute card to Anthony Head”.

Image: Deadline
Image: The A.V. Club
Image: GB News
Image: Digital Spy
Image: /Film

1 / 5

The story, neutrally told

Apple TV's Ted Lasso ended its Season 4 penultimate episode, "Mae Rides the Bus", with a card reading "In Memory of Anthony Head". Head, who played the villain Rupert Mannion, died on June 1 aged 72; his daughters gave the cause as complications from pneumonia. The episode also killed off Mae Green, the pub owner played by Annette Badland, who collapses after the team's win.

Badland told Deadline that Head "was a beautiful man, and he will be much missed" and that she had assumed he would appear this season, not knowing he was ill. Season 4 finished production in January, before Head's death, and many viewers had expected a tribute in an episode featuring Rupert. Episode 409 revealed that Zelda Southport (Tracey Ullman), not Rupert, was secretly buying shares in AFC Richmond, which raised questions about whether the plot changed because of Head's death.

According to sources cited by Deadline, no storylines were changed after his death, and there were no formal plans or official approach for Head to appear in Season 4. Deadline reported that producers placed the card after episode 409 because Rupert's two-episode arc had closed, and that placing it a week earlier would likely have spoiled the twist. Deadline and GB News say Rupert's fate may be addressed in a possible Season 5; The A.V. Club's review of the episode does not mention the tribute and criticises the season's pacing.

Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on.

Left1 outlet

Framing
A critical episode review that focuses on plot and pacing, not the tribute.
Emphasis
Keeley's pregnancy, the pacing of season four, Mae's death and the Zelda reveal.
Leaves out or plays down
Does not mention Anthony Head, the tribute card or his death.
Charged language
“godawful pacing”“particularly manipulative”
For example
“It makes the decision to kill her off now particularly manipulative.” — The A.V. Club

Centre3 outlets

Framing
Entertainment-news reports that lead with the tribute and Badland's comments; Deadline adds the reasoning for the card's placement.
Emphasis
Badland's remarks, the timing of the card, and whether the plot was changed after Head's death.
Leaves out or plays down
Neither discusses the season's pacing criticisms raised in the A.V. Club review.
Charged language
“shock exit”“devastating exit”“poignant tribute”
For example
“With the mystery solved, the producers felt it made sense to run an end card honoring Head in Season 9.” — Deadline
“Ted Lasso has aired the devastating exit of a fan-favourite character” — Digital Spy

Right1 outlet

Framing
A sympathetic tribute story that leads with Head's death and closely follows Deadline's reporting, without crediting it for the sources' account.
Emphasis
The emotional tribute, Badland's memories and Head's career.
Leaves out or plays down
Does not name Deadline as the source of the sources-based claim about unchanged storylines, and does not cover the season's critical reception.
Charged language
“heartbreaking tribute”“deeply moving”“poignant tribute”
For example
“Ted Lasso has honoured late actor Anthony Head with a poignant tribute following his death at the age of 72.” — GB News