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Sherlock is a British mystery crime comedy-drama series co-created by Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat. Based on the Sherlock Holmes novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the BBC series is set in modern London and it follows Sherlock Holmes, a genius man with extraordinary observational skills who works as a consultant for the Scotland Yard to solve intricate mysteries with the help of his best friend and partner, Dr. John Watson. Sherlock stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Mark Gatiss, Lara Pulver, Amanda Abbington, Andrew Scott, Rupert Graves, and Louise Brealey. So, if you loved the thrilling mysteries, compelling drama, and entertaining characters in Sherlock, here are some similar shows you should check out next.

Elementary (Hulu & Prime Video) Credit – CBS

Elementary is a police procedural mystery crime comedy-drama series created by Robert Doherty. Based on the Sherlock novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle,...

David Mitchell is causing double the trouble in Ludwig, the latest British television hit to make its way to U.S. audiences via BritBox. Ludwig sees the star of Peep Show playing John "Ludwig" Taylor, a reclusive puzzle creator who is asked to impersonate his detective brother James, in hopes of finding out where his brother vanished to. It's one-part detective drama and one-part workplace comedy, and it's been a smash hit with audiences.

In an interview with Cbr, Mitchell spoke about how his love of detective dramas motivated him to add Ludwig to his already lengthy resume. He discussed the process of having to portray John playing James, and working alongside Line of Duty alum Anna Maxwell Martin. Plus, he teased what he's looking forward to in Ludwig Series 2.

Cbr: The British detective drama has become a staple in television around the world. What motivated you to want to...

Sherlock co-creator Steven Moffat continues to fuel excitement for season 5 of the acclaimed BBC crime drama. The beloved modern adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic detective stories, Sherlock ran from 2010 to 2017 and featured Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes and Martin Freeman as Dr. John Watson. Created by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, the show brought the famous sleuth into the 21st century, bringing humor and thrilling drama to its intricate mysteries. With the last episode airing seven years ago, however, demand remains for Sherlock season 5 as there hasn't been any progress.

In an interview with SFX, Moffat discussed the prospects of Sherlock season 5, following producer Sue Vertue’s recent comments on the award-winning series’ potential revival. He emphasized that while no concrete plans are in place, he and Gatiss remain enthusiastic about the idea of revisiting the show with season 5. The creator even suggested visiting an older version of Sherlock and John.

Watson takes the lead in a new television series streaming on Paramount+ in 2025, here’s the trailer.

Sherlock Holmes has enjoyed dozen of adaptations over the years, from the classic Basil Rathbone and Jeremy Brett versions, Gene Wilder’s wonderful, and very underrated, parody The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes’ Younger Brother to Robert Downey Jr.’s pair of blockbuster films.

Perhaps the most successful, at least in recent years, is Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss’ Sherlock, which took Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective and planted him firmly in the 21st century.

America also took a crack at the character in Elementary, which starred Johnny Lee Miller as Sherlock and Lucy Liu as Dr Joan Watson.

Now, another American television series is on the way. Watson puts Sherlock’s sidekick at the centre of the action.

Morris Chestnut, best known for starring in The Best Man franchise stars as Watson, alongside...

David Korda, the British film producer and financier who hailed from a family of notable filmmakers including his father Zoltàn Korda, has died. He was 87.

Korda’s death was disclosed Nov. 16 by film historian Charles Drazin via social media. Korda died Sept. 18 at Cromwell Hospital in London following a battle with cancer, according to Drazin who wrote a 2011 biography of Korda’s uncle, producer-director Alexander Korda. News of David Korda’s death was first reported by the Hollywood Reporter.

Korda’s father was the director of films such as 1939’s “The Four Feathers” and 1951’s “Cry, the Beloved Country.” His mother was actress Joan Gardner, known for roles in such films as 1934’s “The Scarlett Pimpernel” and 1937’s “Dark Journey.” His uncle Alexander Korda founded London Films, owner of British Lion Films, which produced the 1933 feature “The Private Life of Henry VIII” and 1949’s “The Third Man.” His uncle Vincent Korda...

David Korda, a prominent member of the Korda family movie dynasty who served as a producer and important film financier in a show business career that spanned more than 60 years, has died. He was 87.

Korda, chairman of the British company Film Finances Ltd., died Sept. 18 at Cromwell Hospital in London, author, editor and film historian Charles Drazin told The Hollywood Reporter. He had been in poor health after a battle with cancer.

Korda’s parents were Zoltan Korda, director of the Ralph Richardson-starring epic The Four Feathers (1939), and actress Joan Gardner (Dark Journey, The Scarlet Pimpernel).

One of his uncles was Alexander Korda, the founder of London Films, the owner of British Lion Films, a producer of such classics as The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) and The Third Man (1949) and the first filmmaker to receive a knighthood. Another uncle, Vincent Korda, was a painter and Oscar-winning art director.

James Bond has been played by some iconic actors, but there are plenty of other classic performers who could have easily been definitive in the role themselves. The early James Bond films established the tone and style of the series, which continues well into the 21st century. While discussions are still being held at the time of this writing over who will replace Daniel Craig in the upcoming James Bond 26 following his swan song in No Time to Die, those kinds of debates have been waged for decades.

Even looking back at the era of Sean Connery's James Bond films, several classically trained actors of the stage and screen would have made fitting additions to the franchise. Many of them were even actively considered or offered the part, but all ultimately turned it down for various reasons. Still, it's worth looking back at some of the most interesting classic...

Moore's Bond films were a cocktail of genres, veering from standard spy thrillers to supernatural and blaxploitation themes. The franchise broke tradition with slapstick humor and wild action sequences, making Moore's tenure unique and memorable. Roger Moore faced off against formidable opponents, like Jaws, and delivered mind-blowing stunts like the AMC Hornet jump over a bridge.

On June 10, 1972, Roger Moore was announced as the new James Bond. Having previously starred as Simon Templar in The Saint and Lord Brett Sinclair in The Persuaders, he knew what it took to play a daring, fashion-savvy, lothario. Born in Stockwell, London, he was also as British as Bond actors come. Surprisingly, everyone always seemed to doubt him. For the 13 years that he was employed by the Broccolis, various critics constantly labeled his version of Agent 007 a buffoon. Others suggested he wasnt as handsome or magnetic as Connery, opinions he disagreed with.

I never...

Sherlock Holmes has been adapted in so many ways that there’s no point in partaking in any kind of pearl clutching activities anymore. Of course, the adaptations featuring Basil Rathbone, Peter Cushing, Jeremy Brett, Michael Caine, Robert Downey Jr., Ian McKellen, Benedict Cumberbatch, and even Jonny Lee Miller will be celebrated by fans of Arthur Conan Doyle’s work. But they also have to deal with the likes of Holmes & Watson, Enola Holmes, Sherlock Gnomes, and Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd century. And you’d think that after a show with a female Sherlock Holmes, a play in which Sherlock and Watson are in a gay relationship, and an animated series by Hayao Miyazaki where the characters are anthropomorphic animals, there’s no way that a new adaptation can surprise you. Well, Shekhar Home asks you to think otherwise.

Directed by Srijit Mukherji and Ronny Sippy, Shekhar Home takes place in the ’90s,...

Ranker is a popular place on the Internet where people can rank whatever they want, however, they want, and whenever they want. This is always a fan-focused ranking system, and it is never officially tied to the people behind the projects in question. Recently, a large survey was organized on Ranker, whose goal was to determine the best movies of all time. The list includes more than 2,500 series, but in our report, we have decided to list the top ten titles from the site to provide you with better insight, combined with our original comments and opinions, which will add flavor to the whole report.

Of course, since this is indeed an important list, we have decided to report on it, so we are going to bring you the results by listing the top 10 series on this list, from 10th to first place. We hope you’ll enjoy it!

10. Better Call Saul...

Amateur sleuth shows used to be popular in the pre-csi era of television.

These series showcased detectives who were not police officers, were often quirky, and could best the cops at solving murders -- if they could get them to listen.

You're right if you think that sounds exactly like CBS' Elsbeth. Elsbeth has more in common with amateur sleuth series of the past than with the show it spun off from, The Good Wife.

Elsbeth is a modern take on classic shows like Columbo, Murder She Wrote, and Diagnosis Murder. Most shows it owes a debt to are no longer on television, but streaming services have given them new life.

Elsbeth Heralds the Return of Amateur Sleuth Shows

Amateur sleuth shows are part of the cozy mystery genre.

Nowadays, they've fallen out of favor -- these mysteries mostly air as movies on the Hallmark channel.

There was a time...

Eighties television was a land of new ideas that hadn’t been seen before. It was also a place where old tropes were made shiny and new with a modern sheen that intrigued audiences and would produce classics like the hospital drama St. Elsewhere and the crime drama Hill Street Blues.

It would be a humdinger of a decade within the genre of mystery and detectives. It would see the return of the iconic detective Mike Hammer in a new series and would also bring us the dramedy Moonlighting. We’d also be treated to one of the greatest performances of Sherlock Holmes ever with the amazing Jeremy Brett.

It would also bring us a female detective who, in a world filled with male counterparts, couldn’t catch a break until she made up her own male counterpart in a boss named Remington Steele. The rest, as they say, is history,...

Sherlock Holmes has received numerous screen adaptations both canon and not, and many actors have also transformed themselves into the legendary detective, such as Jeremy Brett, Benedict Cumberbatch, Robert Downey Jr., and Henry Cavill.

BBC’s Sherlock

A new series following the adventures of the famed mystery solver is confirmed to be in the works at The CW, and it will feature a new Sherlock Holmes as well as a very intriguing twist to the story.

SUGGESTEDBenedict Cumberbatch Hates One Thing About Marvel’s Avengers Movies: “Five minutes, that’s all the time they have” The CW Orders Sherlock & Daughter Series

A new project entitled Sherlock & Daughter is now brewing at The CW with actor David Thewlis in the lead. Fans will find the title a bit different from the previous iterations of the detective thriller, and this unique spin will certainly attract audiences.

The plot of the upcoming show...

Battlestar Galactica has a compelling premise. Twelve human space colonies in a distant part of the universe are at war with a race of artificially intelligent robots called the Cylons. A human called Baltar betrays humanity and the Cylons wipe out the Twelve Colonies and most of their space-faring ships, the Colonial Fleet, in a nuclear attack that leaves their planets uninhabitable. The only surviving vessel from the Fleet is the Battlestar Galactica, along with a ragtag collection of other space vessels. So the human survivors travel across the universe led by Commander Adama of the Galactica, looking for the legendary 13th colony, Earth, to make it their new home.

With such a fascinating setup, it’s no surprise that Battlestar Galactica (1978) has had several sequels, spinoffs, and remakes: the short-lived sequel series Galactica 1980, which was hampered by a lack of most of the original stars; the very successful 2003-...

A new Sherlock Holmes TV adaptation is more exciting than Benedict Cumberbatch's return in Sherlock season 5. Kit Harrington's casting in a Sherlock ghost story brings a supernatural twist and adds personal vulnerability to the character. Sherlock Season 5 may not be necessary, but movies or TV specials can provide fresh narratives and diverse interpretations of Holmes.

A new Sherlock Holmes TV adaptation seems a lot more exciting than watching Benedict Cumberbatch's return in Sherlock season 5. After Sherlock Holmes first appeared in print in 1887, he was portrayed for the first time in an audio-visual medium in an 1899 play. This was followed by the character's first screen appearance in a 1900 Mutoscope film, Sherlock Holmes Baffled. Since then, Sherlock Homes has been portrayed by over 75 actors, holding a world record of being the most portrayed human character in television and film.

Even though so many Sherlock Holmes adaptations exist in film and television,...

Gayle Hunnicutt, whose best-known work came as Vanessa Beaumont, the mother of J.R. Ewing’s illegitimate son, in the final three seasons of Dallas, has died per multiple U.K. reports. Hunnicutt died last Thursday at a hospital in London, according to her ex-husband Simon Jenkins. She was 80 years old.

That Hunnicutt would find fame playing Vanessa Beaumont, a Brit, on a TV show called Dallas was a bit ironic for a woman born in Fort Worth. But it was entirely sensible given that the actress spent much of her career in British TV and movies, even marrying the be-knighted Jenkins before returning to work in the U.S.

Her TV career began with a role on the shortlived small-screen adaptation of Mister Roberts and included roles on The Beverly Hillbillies, Get Smart and in Marlowe opposite James Garner.

In 1970, Hunnicutt met and later married David Hemmings, who himself...

"My Fair Lady" is a 1964 movie musical based on the 1956 Lerner and Loewe stage musical of the same name, which is in turned based on the 1913 stage play "Pygmalion" which, in its own turn, is based on Greek mythology. Sure, that trail ends with Hollywood, but Broadway is up to exact same shenanigans when it comes to remakes and reboots. Although the story of "My Fair Lady" is significantly altered from the original mythos, the core relationship between creator and creation is unchanged. Well, it's now about British high society and not about a sculptor and a sculpture anymore. Close enough, right?

Anyway, the 1964 film stars the one and only Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, the titular fair lady. Co-starring as professor Henry Higgins, the titular claimant of possessing a "fair lady," is Rex Harrison, who also played the role opposite Julie Andrews in the original Broadway production. Wilfrid Hyde-White,...

Continuing to revamp Arthur Conan Doyle's stories of the detective, the release of the movie Enola Holmes 2 is a triumphant return of the beloved main character, the sister of the renowned Sherlock Holmes. In this movie, like its predecessor, the latter is played by Henry Cavill, who brings his own signature charm to one of detective fiction’s most famous figures.

Cavill is just one of many actors who have played Sherlock Holmes, taking more of a supporting role than the usual headliner of his fascinating story. Unsurprisingly, Redditors have been very forthcoming in sharing their opinions about who has the best portrayal of the character, and while some are the usual suspects, there are also a few surprises.

Jeremy Brett

For many Redditors, Jeremy Brett remains the quintessential Sherlock Holmes. He manages to capture so many of the book mannerisms of the character, and the TV series...

Stars: Tom Hendryk, Michael McKell, Helen Crevel, Robin Denys, David Lenik, Mark Topping, Francesca Louise White | Written and Directed by Steve Lawson

Following on from Bram Stoker’s Van Helsing and Ripper Untold, Leicester-based filmmaker Steve Lawson returns with his third take on classic cinematic villains with Jekyll & Hyde; and like those aforementioned movies his story doesn’t take the traditional route, retelling the same story we’ve heard before with a new slant… It’s an interesting low-budget adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novella, Jekyll and Hyde, that’s for sure.

Though if you are looking for a formula, Lawson does follow that which he set out in Bram Stoker’s Van Helsing and Ripper Untold, namely that the film is small-scale, with minimal locations and feels much like a stage play (which it would be if not for the trip to Jekyll’s home) than cinematic...

“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”

That haunting line opened Daphne Du Maurier’s treasured 1938 romantic thriller “Rebecca,” which was published in 1938. Lauded by critics, it quickly became a best-seller and has been in print ever since. And for good reason.

Du Maurier wraps readers around her little finger with this addictive tale of a timid young woman-her name is never mentioned-who meets and falls in love with an enigmatic wealthy widower, Maxim de Winter, while in Monte Carlo working as a paid companion to the obnoxious American, Mrs. Van Hopper. Max and the young woman soon fall in love. They marry and he takes her home to his gothic estate Manderley run with an iron-fist by the tightly wound housekeeper Mrs. Danvers who is obsessed with the late, charismatic Rebecca, the late wife of Maxim.

Two years after its publication, “Gone with the Wind” producer David O. Selznick...

The new Netflix film Enola Holmes is the talk of the internet at the moment. And while the story centers around Sherlock Holmes’ younger sister, people can’t help but notice how Henry Cavill’s version of the private detective is so different from what we’ve seen in other incarnations.

There was a time when Jeremy Brett was unrivalled as the best version of the character. Then came Benedict Cumberbatch’s modern and quirky Sherlock, and alongside it the witty Robert Downey Jr. in the film series. Now, the genius crime fighting investigator has once again graced the screens with his mad deductions skills. Only this time, Henry Cavill, the actor known for playing the Man of Steel in the Dceu and Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher, has taken up the mantle. Or more precisely, the deerstalker and the overcoat.

What’s more, this particular version is merely...

Ben Wheatley has emerged as one of contemporary cinema’s most dynamic genre filmmakers, thanks to projects such as “Kill List,” “Sightseers,” “High Rise,” and “Free Fire,” and now he’s taking on one of the most famous genre stories ever written: Daphne du Maurier’s Gothic classic “Rebecca.” Backed by Netflix, Wheatley’s “Rebecca” is the first major film adaptation of the novel since Alfred Hitchcock’s 1940 version starring Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine. Hitchcock’s adaptation won the Oscar for Best Picture. Can Wheatley deliver a retelling of the same caliber? Netflix’s trailer for the new “Rebecca” below gives moviegoers their first look at what Wheatley has hinted is a new take on the material.

Netflix’s official synopsis for “Rebecca” reads: “After a whirlwind romance in Monte Carlo with handsome widower Maxim de Winter (Armie Hammer), a newly married young woman (Lily James) arrives at Manderley,...

Claudine Auger, the French actress who starred opposite Sean Connery as Domino Derval in the 1965 James Bond movie Thunderball, has died. According to her talent agency, Time Art, Auger passed away on Wednesday in Paris following a "long period of illness." The veteran actress was 78 years old.

Born in Paris, France, in 1941, Auger took an early interest in modeling work, earning the title of Miss France Monde and was also named the first runner-up in the 1958 Miss World contest. At the age of 18, She later attended the Conservatoire de Paris where she began performing dramatic acting roles, making her film debut while she was still attending school. Her first role came as a ballerina in the 1958 movie Christine, and she followed this up with appearances in other '60s movies like Le Masque de fer, Kati Yug: Goddess of Vengeance, and Triple Cross.

Of course, Auger's breakout role came in...

French actress Claudine Auger, noted for her role as Dominique “Domino” Derval in James Bond film Thunderball, has died at the age of 78.

The news was announced by her agency Time Art, which said she died in Paris on Thursday (December 20), as reported by numerous French press. No cause of death was disclosed.

Auger began her acting career in France when Jean Cocteau cast her in a small role in his 1960 pic Testament Of Orpheus. At the age of 18, she married the French filmmaker Pierre Gaspard-Huit, who was 43 at the time, and he cast her in several of his films including his 1958 film Christine in which she appeared alongside Romy Schneider and Alain Delon.

Her big break came when she landed the role of Domino in Thunderball, the fourth pic in the James Bond franchise in which she starred with Sean Connery, playing the mistress of arch villain Emilio Largo...

Even after all the great roles he’s taken since, for many people, Benedict Cumberbatch will always be Sherlock Holmes. It was the part that took him from ‘that actor with the weird British name’ to global megastardom, and launched the desires of millions of Cumberbitches all around the world. But while his performance in Sherlock is currently the standard by which contemporary takes on the role are judged, there’s one person who didn’t entirely approve of his casting.

In an interview with GQ, Cumberbatch explained that his own mom had a pretty funny reaction when he broke the news to her, telling the outlet the following:

“The first thing my mother said when I mentioned to her that I’d got the part was ‘You don’t have the right nose.’”

Now, I’ve had a second look at Cumberbatch’s schnozz and I don’t see anything particular un-Sherlocky about it,...

Sean Wilson Jan 16, 2017

From the BBC's Sherlock, through Disney, Hans Zimmer and Young Sherlock Holmes: we salute the music of Mr Holmes...

Few characters have enjoyed as much reinvention as Arthur Conan Doyle's sleuth Sherlock Holmes, an enduring icon who is as much bound up with the history of cinema (and indeed stage, TV and radio) as he is with literature. Indeed, adaptations of Holmes stories stretch right the way back to the earliest days of film at the start of the 20th century. Fittingly enough given Holmes' penchant for a violin serenade, the musical scores to his adventures are as richly varied as the outcomes to his mysteries are unexpected. Here are Holmes' musical highlights, from Buster Keaton through to Benedict Cumberbatch.

Sherlock Jr. (1924)

Not, strictly speaking, a Sherlock movie but as the title implies, the legacy of the character casts a long shadow over Buster Keaton's silent classic.

Kayti Burt Aug 8, 2016

From silent film to the BBC's Sherlock, we're perusing the many on-screen incarnations of the villainous Culverton Smith...

Contains potential spoilers for Sherlock series 4 (well, in the sense that it talks about the hundred-year-old story that inspired one of its characters).

In series 4 of the BBC drama, we're told Culverton Smith is to be Sherlock's "darkest villain yet". Introduced in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Dying Detective" and continuing in various film and TV adaptations over the years, the character has already had a long screen career.

In preparation for the forthcoming season of Sherlock (because what else are we supposed to do with this interminable hiatus?), we're taking a look at Culverton Smith's on-screen history through the ages. We've got your silent films. We've got your fan films. We've got your Jeremy Brett. Pick your poison — or should I say infectious disease...

First, an introduction.

By Tim Greaves

Numerous actors have occupied the role of Sherlock Holmes over the decades, some more suited to the shoes of author Arthur Conan Doyle's famous consulting detective than others. One of the finest portrayals is that by Ian Richardson. Yet, sadly, his is also one that is often overlooked, not leastways because he played the character just twice (in a pair of 1983 films made for television), but also because his light was to be quickly eclipsed a year later by the arrival on TV screens of Jeremy Brett, whose interpretation of Holmes is considered by many to be the definitive one.

Sy Weintraub – who produced several Tarzan movies throughout the 60s and was executive producer on the popular long-running Ron Ely TV series –teamed up with Otto Plaschkes (whose producer credits include Georgie Girl and The Holcroft Covenant) with the intention of making several Holmes adventures headlining Richardson.

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Sherlock showrunners Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss share the thinking behind the Sherlock Christmas Special, The Abominable Bride…

The Abominable Bride, a Victorian-set adventure for Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman's Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, comes to BBC One and selected cinemas on New Year's Day.

The plan, as far as it's known, is for series four of Sherlock to start filming a few months afterwards, in Spring 2016.

Here's what Sherlock showrunners Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss told assembled press at a round-table interview on this February's set visit for The Abominable Bride. One message was made very clear: underneath the Victorian garb, it's still very much the same show...

On how the decision to take Sherlock back in time for the Victorian-set Special came about:

Mark Gatiss: We’ve sort of joked about the idea for a long time, but it’s just massively...

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On a February set visit to Bristol, a group of journalists chatted to Martin Freeman about Sherlock’s Victorian-set Christmas Special…

Read the Sherlock special set visit round-table interview with Benedict Cumberbatch, here.

Filming on Sherlock’s first Christmas Special, The Abominable Bride, took place at the beginning of this year. Back then, very little was known about the episode, and the BBC was naturally keen to keep it that way.

Prior to visiting the Bristol set in February, we'd been told that the Special was set in the Victorian era, and that was more or less where the certainties ended. The rest was a hotchpotch of rumour, deduction and inference.

If the following cast and creators round-table interviews seem to have a hint of courtroom interrogation or parlour game about them, then, that air of secrecy explains it. Regardless of the constraints on what could and couldn’t be confirmed,...

Stars: Ian McKellen, Laura Linney, Hattie Morahan, Milo Parker, Hiroyuki Sanada, Hattie Morahan, Patrick Kennedy, Roger Allam, Philip Davis, Frances de la Tour, John Sessions | Written by Jeffrey Hatcher | Directed by Bill Condon

In 1947, the world famous sleuth has retired to a remote Sussex farmhouse, living in relative anonymity with only his housekeeper Mrs Munro and her young son Roger for company. Cantankerous, demanding and frustrated with the mis-representation of him in Watson’s best-selling novels, he diverts his attention to an unsolved case. As the mystery deepens, Sherlock tries desperately to recall the events of 30 years ago that ultimately led to his retirement.

I had high hopes for Mr. Holmes. After all, not only does the film star Ian McKellan in the central role but Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s character is, typically, guaranteed to provide some intriguing crime-solving action. Not so here.

Instead Conan Doyle’s iconic detective...

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To celebrate the release of The Englishman’s Castle, Chandler and Co., A Picture of Katherine Mansfield, The Locksmith and Lazarus & Dingwall on DVD, we are giving 1 lucky WhatCulture reader the chance to win a bundle containing all five!

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An Englishman’s Castle (1978) starring Kenneth More (Father Brown), Isla Blair (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade) and Anthony Bate (Tinker, Tailor, Solider Spy), is set in an alternate 1970s on an Earth where Germany won the Second World War and is now occupying England. Peter Ingram (More) is the lead writer of a popular soap opera set in Blitz-era London, and knowingly turns a blind eye to the local Nazi rule, opting for the easy life. But when faced with the stark reality of the situation Peter has a difficult decision to make.

Available to own on DVD from 5th October 2015.

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Chandler and Co.

Summer 2015 had a lot to offer, a lot to lose sleep over, and a lot to learn from. It gave us hope that the next summer could be even better, and that Hollywood blockbusters still have some life in them yet. Before back to school this month, here are nine lessons we took away from this summer at the movies.

Lesson #1: Mad Max: Fury Road reset the bar for action movies – Zach Dennis

In a summer overrun by dinosaurs and emotive minds, the real kings of the season busted through the Australian apocalypse on top of supercharged cars with a chrome-infused vengeance. In a summer where nostalgia boomed, a new film that will influence the future was born — and it was born on the Fury Road.

Good movies are invigorating, and nothing awoke everyone’s passion like Mad Max: Fury Road did. It wasn’t just classic fun tied...

The BBC show starring Benedict Cumberbatch; the CBS series starring Lucy Liu and Jonny Lee Miller; the Guy Ritchie movies starring Robert Downey Jr.: The speed at which Sherlock Holmes has become a thing again never ceases to shock this particular Sherlockian. Once upon a time, the detective was a musty, dusty figure, vaguely familiar to the public at large but fixated upon by a small coterie of Victoriana-obsessed irregulars. Interest in him occasionally flared up — the 1980s PBS series starring Jeremy Brett and the 1940s films starring Basil Rathbone were two high points — but never anything like this. Sherlock Holmes is totally cool again, which warms my dorky heart.In Bill Condon’s Mr. Holmes, Ian McKellen gives one of his finest performances, as an aging Holmes reflecting on the past and contending with his legacy. The film clearly owes some debt to the recent rise in interest...

According to Guiness World Records, Sherlock Holmes is the most portrayed fictional character, by more than 70 actors in over 200 films, plays and television shows. I haven't seen all of those, but Ian McKellen can certainly put his performance near the top of the list of great ones (my favourite will always be Jeremy Brett). Reuniting with director Bill Condon (Gods and Monsters, Kinsey), McKellen brings the world's greatest detective to life in a somewhat sedate mystery, more of an examination of the ravages of old age and senility, and the guilt that can prey upon those who have perhaps been a bit too insensitive. While not a surprising film, in that the story unfolds in expected ways, Mr. Holmes, based on the book...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

From spoofs to point-and-click adventure games, here are 10 of the most memorable unusual incarnations of Sherlock Holmes...

We don’t know a great deal about the content of the 90-minute Sherlock special set to air later this year, but one thing has emerged from the set photos and tantalising titbits of information we’ve seen so far. Sherlock Holmes and John Watson will be in nineteenth-century garb, pitching them back into the setting of the legendary detective’s original adventures: 1895, to be precise. Why that happens is as yet unclear, but all will be revealed.

For those still craving their Holmes fix in the meantime, the new film Mr. Holmes offers us Ian McKellen’s take on the character, musing upon an old case as he looks back on his long career from the vantage point of retirement. Jonny Lee Miller’s ultra-modern, Us-based Sherlock will be entering his fourth...

'Nicholas and Alexandra': Movie starred Michael Jayston and Janet Suzman 'Nicholas and Alexandra' movie review: Opulent 1971 spectacle lacks emotional core Nicholas and Alexandra is surely one of the most sumptuous film productions ever made. The elaborate sets and costumes, Richard Rodney Bennett's lush musical score, and frequent David Lean collaborator Freddie Young's richly textured cinematography provide the perfect period atmosphere for this historical epic. Missing, however, is a screenplay that offers dialogue instead of speeches, and a directorial hand that brings out emotional truth instead of soapy melodrama. Nicholas and Alexandra begins when, after several unsuccessful attempts, Tsar Nicholas II (Michael Jayston) finally becomes the father of a boy. Shortly thereafter, he and his wife, the German-born Empress Alexandra (Janet Suzman), have their happiness crushed when they discover that their infant son is a hemophiliac. In addition to his familial turmoil, the Tsar must also deal with popular...

Martin Clunes has revealed that he is keen to reprise the role of Arthur Conan Doyle after ITV's Arthur & George.

Clunes stars as the Sherlock Holmes creator in the three-part drama, based on the true story of Doyle fighting to free an innocent man charged with a violent crime.

"I think it'd be fun to revisit, but who knows?" the actor told Digital Spy and other press. "It's great for television to have returning dramas, we all know that.

"There are other cases that he did look into - when Agatha Christie went missing, he was called in to find her... so there you go!"

Clunes insisted that any possible continuation is "up to ITV", adding: "We would like to - it depends how it performs."

The star also revealed that he "was never a Sherlock Holmes nut", despite being related to actor Jeremy Brett - who played the famous...

According to Guiness World Records, Sherlock Holmes is the most portrayed fictional character, by more than 70 actors in over 200 films, plays and television shows. I haven't seen all of those, but Ian McKellen can certainly put his performance near the top of the list of great ones (my favourite will always be Jeremy Brett).Reuniting with director Bill Condon (Gods and Monsters, Kinsey), McKellen brings the world's greatest detective to life in a somewhat sedate mystery, more of an examination of the ravages of old age and senility, and the guilt that can prey upon those who have perhaps been a bit too insensitive. While not a surprising film, in that the story unfolds in expected ways, Mr. Holmes (based on the book A...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman return to Sherlock for the 2015 Special. Here's a round-up of the Special news and rumours so far...

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Filming on the 2015 Sherlock Special kicked off in Bristol on Monday the 5th of January. The Victorian vaulted cellars of music venue Colstan Hall are reported to be providing one backdrop for the episode.

Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman were both snapped by trusty #setlock fans wearing the same period costume as in the preview image released by the BBC in November (see above).

Underneath that handsome top hat, Cumberbatch is sporting a shiny slicked-back hair do that, as does his costume, bears a strong resemblance to that worn by Jeremy Brett in the 80s-90s Granada Television Holmes series. Martin Freeman was also photographed in his David Burke-as-Watson-style brown suit and ‘tache (which, seeing how much the actor reputedly didn’t enjoy wearing his...

"Sherlock" may not return for its fourth season until -- say it ain't so -- 2017, due to the hectic film schedules of in-demand stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. In the meantime, you can rewatch all three seasons and soon you can binge on Cumberbatch in "The Imitation Game" and Freeman in "The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies." But what then?

If you're craving more veddy British crime solving, you don't have far to look. Here are some of the best series the BBC (and ITV) has to offer, with private detectives, psychiatrists, cops, spies, and forensic pathologists all cracking cases, catching criminals and drinking lots of tea.

1. "Sherlock Holmes" (1984-1994)

If it's more Sherlock you crave (and not just Mr. Cumberbatch), then you must see Jeremy Brett's intensely intellectual (and equally arrogant) period-appropriate take on the legendary detective. This Watson is also solid, especially in "The House of the Baskervilles.

BBC One has used their official Twitter feed to post the first promo photo for the one-off special of "Sherlock" due to air late next year. The special begins production in January and precedes a full fourth series which will go into production later in 2015 for a 2016 airing.

Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman seemed to be dressed up in garb more appropriate to the classic Holmes and Watson of Arthur Conan Doyle's stories, Cumberbatch also seems to be emulating an iconic outfit Jeremy Brett donned in the 1980s "Sherlock Holmes" Granada TV series - see this photo for comparison.

Producer Sue Vertue confirms that the pair will appear in these outfits in the special. BBC One has also tweeted a copy of the cover of the script for the special which you can see below:

This is what we've been doing today! Later on a pic of Sherlock and...

By  Lee Pfeiffer

If you're pondering what to get your significant other for a holiday gift, look no further than "Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Granada Television Series", which has been released in a boxed set by Mpi Home Entertainment. For many, series star Jeremy Brett was- and remains- the definitive interpretation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's legendary detective. There have been countless actors who have provided wide-ranging performances as Holmes and most of them are commendable in their own way. However, Brett's debut as Holmes in this classic British TV series met with instant international acclaim even among the notoriously fussy Holmes scholars who never seem to be pleased with screen presentation of their literary hero.  

The Mpi set contains:

Every episode of the series (41 episodes on 12 DVDs) Includes the five feature film-length adventures   Profusely illustrated collector's guide booklet with extensive essays by film historian Richard Valley Interview...

Benedict Cumberbatch is everywhere. He's got no fewer than three films coming out between now and the end of the year, with Oscar-tipped biopic The Imitation Game in cinemas now, and The Penguins of Madagascar and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies imminent.

After months of speculation surrounding the casting of Marvel's next superhero Doctor Strange, fresh reports have emerged linking Cumberbatch to the coveted role, although nothing has yet been confirmed. There's also the small matter of his recent engagement, which was announced in a characteristically classy manner earlier this month.

It would be easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of Cumberexposure. But fear not – Digital Spy's handy A-z guide is here to fill in the gaps in your knowledge.

A is for Alan Turing

In what's being widely heralded as the performance that will earn him his first Oscar nomination come January, Cumberbatch...

Benedict Cumberbatch is everywhere. He's got no fewer than three films coming out between now and the end of the year, with Oscar-tipped biopic The Imitation Game in cinemas now, and The Penguins of Madagascar and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies imminent.

After months of speculation surrounding the casting of Marvel's next superhero Doctor Strange, fresh reports have emerged linking Cumberbatch to the coveted role, although nothing has yet been confirmed. There's also the small matter of his recent engagement, which was announced in a characteristically classy manner earlier this month.

It would be easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of Cumberexposure. But fear not – Digital Spy's handy A-z guide is here to fill in the gaps in your knowledge.

A is for Alan Turing

In what's being widely heralded as the performance that will earn him his first Oscar nomination come January, Cumberbatch...

Between the long-awaited confirmation of Sherlock's fourth series, the even longer-awaited confirmation of Sherlock Holmes 3, and the upcoming release of Anthony Horowitz's novel Moriarty, the cult of Holmes is positively thriving.

It's no secret that we're big Baker Street fans here at Digital Spy, so we were predisposed to enjoy the Museum of London's new exhibition Sherlock Holmes: The Man Who Never Lived and Will Never Die.

Incorporating video footage, paintings, written extracts, props from the BBC's Sherlock and some artifacts belonging to Arthur Conan Doyle himself, there are too many Holmesian treasures to name within the multimedia exhibition. But below are the five main reasons it's a must-do for any fan.

1. See the birth of Sherlock Holmes

On paper, that is. One of the rarest and most impressive items in the exhibition is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's notebook, which contains the first lines of...

Of the well-over-200 Sherlock Holmes films produced since 1900, one you might not have expected to see was 1916's Sherlock Holmes. Before Benedict Cumberbatch, Robert Downey Jr, Ian McKellen and Jonny Lee Miller; before Jeremy Brett and Peter Cushing; before even Basil Rathbone, there was William Gillette, in the blockbuster 1899 stage play Sherlock Holmes: A Drama In Four Acts. Long thought to have been lost forever, a nitrate copy of the film adaptation has just been uncovered in the vaults of the French film archive the Cinémathèque Français.Gillette toured the world with the play and became indelibly linked to the famous Baker Street detective. It was Gillette that popularised the deerstalker hat and the big pipe (though he in turn got them from Strand magazine illustrator Sidney Paget); coined the phrase "Elementary, my dear Watson"; and was the recipient of the famous telegram from a bored-of-Holmes Arthur Conan Doyle telling him that he could,...

'Sherlock Holmes' movie found at Cinémathèque Française (image: William Gillette in 'Sherlock Holmes') Sherlock Holmes, a long-thought-lost 1916 feature starring stage performer and playwright William Gillette in the title role, has been discovered in the vaults of the Cinémathèque Française. Directed by the all-but-forgotten Arthur Berthelet for the Chicago-based Essanay production company, the approximately 90-minute movie is supposed to be not only the sole record of William Gillette's celebrated performance as Arthur Conan Doyle's detective, but also the only surviving Gillette film.* In the late 19th century, William Gillette himself wrote the play Sherlock Holmes, which turned out to be a mash-up of various stories and novels featuring the detective, chiefly the short stories "A Scandal in Bohemia" and "The Final Problem." ("May I marry Holmes?" Gillette, while vying for the role, telegraphed Conan Doyle. The latter replied, "You may marry or murder or do What you like with him.

Before Benedict Cumberbatch, Robert Downey Jr., Jeremy Brett, or Basil Rathbone donned the deerstalker, the world’s first film version of Sherlock Holmes was performed by an actor named William Gillette. Never heard of him? That is hardly surprising, as Gillette was primarily a stage actor and made only one film: Sherlock Holmes, from 1916. Long thought lost, Sherlock Holmes was recently discovered by the Cinematheque Francaise, and is currently in the process of a digital restoration with the help of the San Francisco Silent Film Festival.

Directed by Arthur Berthelet and produced by Essanay Studios in Chicago, the 1916 film version of Sherlock Holmes features Gillette in the titular role as he comes into conflict with his arch-nemesis Professor Moriarty. The film contains a number of set pieces that were part of Gillette’s original play, and apparently illustrates how Gillette brought a number of elements from various Sherlock Holmes stories into the plot.

Might the BBC’s Sherlock adapt The Adventure Of The Blue Carbuncle for its 2015 festive special?

Feature

Whether by accident or design, Martin Freeman let the world in on the secret of Sherlock’s 2015 one-off episode weeks ago. Though the C-word was absent from the BBC’s official announcement, Freeman’s rogue comments identified the episode as “a Christmas special”, which is motivation enough for us to fire up the wild speculation engines.

As Arthur Conan Doyle readers will tell you, one Sherlock Holmes story in particular is ripe for adaptation as a Christmas special. With its playful plot, lack of murder or violence, and frothy story of a hapless jewel theft, The Adventure Of The Blue Carbuncle essentially is a nineteenth century Christmas special. It’s a quirky 27-page mystery with a happy ending that finds the Great Detective in a jocund, sportive mood. It features a goose, a...