Part of the appeal of Netflix's Stranger Things is the intricate web of pop culture references woven through it. The Eighties-set series harks back to dozens of sci-fi and horror classics from the period, but one particular reference in the new second series that has prompted wild speculation among fans: could it be set in the same world as Stephen King's It?

In the third episode, Bob (Sean Astin), a new addition to the show, tells anxious young Will (Noah Schapp) about a recurring dream he had as a child, in which he was visited by "Mr Baldo", a terrifying clown who would ask him, "Do you want a balloon?"

Bob's story would sound eerily familiar to anyone who's read Stephen King's 1986 novel, seen its 1990 TV adaptation or this summer's blockbuster film of the same name (which also featured Stranger Things' Finn Wolfhard in its cast). Set in a small town in Maine – the same state where Bob grew up, and where King lives – the story sees a group of children terrorised by an evil shapeshifting entity, which often takes the form of a clown called Pennywise.

Just minutes into the film adaptation of It, Pennywise asks a small boy called Georgie, "Do you want a balloon?" before dragging him away to his death. One of the more haunting elements of King's novel is the fact that adults grow up to forget their encounters with the creature, only recalling a faint memory of the clown. The creature feeds on children's fear; after Bob confronted it fearlessly, and told it to "go away", he never saw it again.