This image was posted on Twitter by @GreysABC
This tweet from actress Ellen Pompeo will be the final nail in McDreamy's coffin for those
Grey's Anatomy fans who were clinging to the slender hope that his death in an episode last week would turn out to be a belated and cruel April Fool prank:
McDreamy's staying dead, despite a petition on
Change.org to have him resurrected. Over 57,000 fans have signed so far.
Last Thursday, Ellen's character Meredith pulled the plug on a comatose Dr Derek Shepherd who was put on life support after a car crash, bringing to a final and tragic conclusion the 11-year-long love story around which had hinged the trials, tribulations and triumphs of the Shonda Rhimes-created medical drama.
Fans were devastated by the sudden death of one of the series' original characters, nicknamed McDreamy and played by actor Patrick Dempsey, who signed off with this tweet:
An outpouring of grief on Twitter included this obituary posted by the show's official account:
Fresh episodes of
Grey's Anatomy air on American TV every Thursday.