It is perhaps the biggest mystery in television history. When The Sopranos ended with an abrupt blackout following a family dinner, seven years of speculation began. Had Tony finally been whacked?

Creator David Chase has always refused to give a clear answer, but for a few hours on Wednesday, it appeared as if he had changed his mind. In a lengthy piece for Vox, writer Martha P Nochimson reported that Chase had finally given her an answer to the burning question of whether Tony Soprano was dead. She wrote:

He shook his head - no. And he said simply - No he isn’t. That was all.