The Great Game 

Mycroft needs Sherlock's help, but a remorseless criminal mastermind puts Sherlock on a distracting crime-solving spree via a series of hostage human bombs through which he speaks.

Director:

Paul McGuigan

Writers:

Mark Gatiss, Arthur Conan Doyle (based on the works of) (as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Stars:

Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Rupert Graves

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Benedict Cumberbatch	...	Sherlock Holmes
Martin Freeman	...	Dr. John Watson
Rupert Graves	...	DI Lestrade
Una Stubbs	...	Mrs. Hudson
Zoe Telford	...	Sarah
Louise Brealey	...	Molly Hooper
Andrew Scott	...	Jim Moriarty
Vinette Robinson	...	Sgt Sally Donovan
Matthew Needham	...	Bezza
Kemal Sylvester	...	Tube Guard
San Shella	...	Andrew West
Deborah Moore	...	Crying Woman
Lauren Crace	...	Lucy
Nicholas Gadd	...	Scared Man
Caroline Trowbridge	...	Mrs Monkford

Storyline

Mycroft wants his brother Sherlock to investigate the murder of civil servant Andrew West and theft of the Bruce-Partington missile plans. Sherlock, however, prefers to assist Lestrade following a massive bomb blast. The sadistic bomber abducts a string of hostages, who will be released after Sherlock has solved a series of puzzles, including a twenty year old murder, an insurance scam, and the alleged forgery of a long lost painting.

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Plot Keywords:

crying | murder | bomb | criminal mastermind | boredom | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 November 2010 (USA)

Filming Locations:

St. Bartholomew's Hospital, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hartswood Films,BBC Wales,Masterpiece Theatre

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The music used in the Planetarium presentation on Jupiter is from The Planets suite by Gustav Holst, but it is the first movement ("Mars, the Bringer of War"), not the fourth ("Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity").

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Goofs

In the opening scene when John is going to the refrigerator, a white skull can be seen on the left side of the kitchen table among all Sherlock's science equipment. When he closes the refrigerator door again after discovering the severed head, the skull has disappeared. As he's leaving the kitchen, the skull reappears.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Sherlock Holmes: Just... tell me what happened from the beginning.

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Connections

References Jim'll Fix It (1975)

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Soundtracks

Opening Titles
(uncredited)
Written by David Arnold and Michael Price

User Reviews

One of the best TV-Shows that I've ever saw.

"Sherlock" is an excellent series. As the series progresses, it gets better, until the amazing climax at the end of this episode. the director has done a great job, he hasn't used too much effects, and instead he has used some amazing editing things like camera movement, unusual camera angles and very nice focus games. All these effects did the series, and this episode especially, so good. I want to point out that the music was amazing, too. the cast did their job on the best side. Cumberbatch gave us an excellent role, which I liked it more than Downey Junior's Sherlock Holmes. I hope that Cumberbatch will do the transition from TV to the big screen. The third episode's plot was very good, the director keep us suspense until the last minutes, with the amazing finish. What can I say? please give us more episodes, and not just 3 more. Elementary, my dear Watson.