Every year, the NCAA holds its Division 1 basketball tournament, known colloquially as "March Madness." Basketball fans the world over set up water cooler bets with their colleagues over their brackets, and shed some mostly-proverbial but also probably very real tears when favorite teams are ousted by unexpected wildcards and cinderella stories. But who cares about sports when you can bet on your favorite MASTERPIECE drama?

That's right: this year, we're hosting the first ever official MASTERPIECE Madness. Over the next week, YOU will choose which shows gain a berth into further rounds of the competition โ€” and, ultimately, which show is crowned as this year's champion. Here's how it works:

Step 1:
Download our bracket here, and make your predictions. Share them with us on social with the hashtag #MasterpieceMadness.

Step 2:
Vote! Your choices will literally determine who makes it into the next round, so don't forget to weigh in.

Round of 16 โ€“ Polls go live on March 22

The first round saw the thrill of victory and the very real agony of defeat. In the upper costume quadrant, heavy hitter Downton Abbey was knocked out by newcomer Sanditon. Bleak House has a reason for the foul mood, losing handily to Pride & Prejudice '95. All Creatures defeated The Durrells, and despite the best efforts of scrappy Sharpe fans, Poldark took the day. In the detective category, Endeavour's efforts were no match for Miss Scarlet & The Duke. The real nail-biter of the competiton so far, the Christie face-off of Marple v Poirot, ended with Poirot on top. Sherlock wiped the floor with Prime Suspect, and Grantchester easily took down Unforgotten.

In the next round, we'll see an Austen v. Austen matchup, some stunning scenery, two very stylish detectives going head to head, and crime solving duos duking it out. Who will win? It's up to you!

Round of 8 โ€“ Polls go live on March 24

What a round! Sanditon's cinderella story run continued, as the show narrowly defeated the much loved Pride & Prejudice '95. Gorgeous countryside and cute animals weren't quite enough for All Creatures to take down the gorgeous Aidan Turner Poldark. On the detective side, Miss Scarlet narrowly defeated Poirot, while Sherlock handily took out Grantchester.

For our Final Four, we'll see a sea-side face off with Sanditon v. Poldark, and a unusual detective duo with Miss Scarlet v. Sherlock. Who will win? You decide!

Round of 4 โ€“ Polls go live on March 26

In a competition that's only getting fiercer, Sanditon won the beach side of the bracket, sending Poldark packing. The mystery side saw a last minute resurgence from the Sherlock camp, which brought the 221b boys a seat in the final despite the hard work of both Miss Scarlet & The Duke.

With the final two of Sanditon v. Sherlock, it's a true fandom face off. Cast your votes to decide who takes the title!

Championship โ€“ Polls go live on March 29

After a hard-fought battle, featuring passionate fans from around the world, a champion has been crowned. Sanditon, the true cinderella story of this competition, was victorious! Like the little engine that could, Sanditon defeated drama behemouth Downton Abbey in round one, Pride & Prejudice '95, the adaptation that introduced a generation to Austen (and Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle) in round two, the scrappy Cornish mining community from Poldark in round three, and finally, in the final, Sherlock, the show that arguably helped launch the modern era of fandom.

And with that, #MasterpieceMadness 2021 draws to a close. Which shows do you want to see compete next year? Send us a message on Twitter to let us know!

Champion announced โ€“ March 31