Murder Rooms: Mysteries of the Real Sherlock Holmes 

Certain events which had an impact on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, while he was still a medical student under the supervision of Dr. Bell, his teacher and mentor, on whom the character of Sherlock Holmes is partly drawn from.

Stars:

Ian Richardson, Charles Edwards, Simon Chandler

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Ian Richardson	...	Dr. Joseph Bell 5 episodes, 2000-2001
Charles Edwards	...	Arthur Conan Doyle 4 episodes, 2001
Simon Chandler	...	Inspector Warner 3 episodes, 2001
Mossie Smith	...	Mrs. Williams 2 episodes, 2001
Sean Wightman	...	Mortuary Clerk / ... 2 episodes, 2000-2001
Ben Macleod	...	Innes Doyle 2 episodes, 2001

Storyline

Certain events which had an impact on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, while he was still a medical student under the supervision of Dr. Bell, his teacher and mentor, on whom the character of Sherlock Holmes is partly drawn from.

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Plot Keywords:

tv mini series | sir arthur conan doyle character | sherlock holmes character | character name in series title | eight word series title | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 May 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dr. Bell and Mr. Doyle

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ian Richardson previously played Sherlock Holmes in The Sign of Four (1983) and The Hound of the Baskervilles (1983).

User Reviews

atmospheric series

An atmospheric series usually employs a lot of dry ice, and this one is no exception, taking place in a Gothic style London.

Arthur Conan Doyle got his inspiration for Sherlock Holmes from a doctor for whom he clerked, Dr. Bell. This series is about mysteries which Dr. Bell solved. So in a way, it's Holmes and Watson by way of Bell and Doyle.

The mysteries are good, drawing on the supernatural and even the horror genre for plots. The problem is that using the name "Sherlock Holmes" is like a bait and switch. Dr. Bell has none of Holmes' quirks - in fact, he's not in it enough for us to see much of anything. The focus is on the less interesting Watson. The series explores his current life as well as his past.

Robert Louis Stevenson read "A Study and Scarlet" and wrote to Doyle saying, "Can this be my old friend Joe Bell?" referring to Sherlock. I'm not sure, if you took Sherlock's name out of the title, if it would be all that readily apparent that Bell is the inspiration for Holmes.

I would have switched the focus and done more with the medical side of Dr. Bell. But I didn't produce it. I don't know where the series aired originally, but it strikes me it was on Masterpiece Theatre -- I would say it's a typical Masterpiece Theatre mystery series, though not exceptional.