A little over two years ago, October 2010 to be exact, we had the great good fortune to interview Benedict Cumberbatch while in the UK just prior to the first series of Sherlock airing on PBS as part of the Masterpiece Mystery series. In these never before segments from the interview, Cumberbatch talked, early on, about what immediately attracted him to Sherlock, the BBC/PBS series from Moffat and Gatiss.
 

 
Next, in answering Sherlock purists who couldn’t bare to see the world’s most famous consulting detective have a smart phone, he talked about the challenges of incorporating new technology into the 21st century Sherlock while attempting to remain true to the classic nature of the story.
 

 
Finally, it was quite evident even in the early days of Sherlock, that he and co-star Martin Freeman had already developed a great friendship and on-screen chemistry that has been clearly apparent since day one.
 

Bearing out what Cumberbatch alluded to in the 2010 interview, Paul McGuigan, who directed two episodes of Sherlock, continued the defense of the adaptations from Sherlock purists saying that this is in keeping with Conan Doyle’s character, pointing out that “In the books, he would use any device possible and he was always in the lab doing experiments. It’s just a modern-day version of it. He will use the tools that are available to him today in order to find things out.”

Confirmed at the PBS Annual Meeting this past week in Miami Beach is the return to Foyle’s War to the PBS schedule this Fall as part of the Masterpiece Mystery! series. Beginning Sunday, September 15, Michael Kitchen will return in his new role as Senior Intelligence Officer for a new series of Foyle’s War which will be comprised of 3, two-hour programs set during the early period following World War II. Foyle will now focus his attention on the world of espionage as he transitions from World War to Cold War. It’s a rather big adjustment for Foyle as he is now faced with a British establishment that is rife with communist sympathizers and traitors.

As Foyle now spends his time gathering secret intelligence in support of Britain’s security, defense and the Government’s foreign and economic policies, the first of three mysteries, “The Eternity Ring”, begins in New Mexico in 1945 before switching to London a year later.
 

 
Originally part of PBS’ Mystery series in 2004 and running on ITV in the UK since 2002, it’s been three years since we last crossed paths with Chief Superintendent Christopher Foyle. According to novelist and screenwriter Anthony Horowitz, who wrote episodes 1 and 3, the new Foyle’s War will begin in a post-war era Britain. Besides Kitchen returning as Foyle, Honeysuckle Weeks returns as Samantha Stewart, Foyle’s driver who provided valuable assistance over the years. You may remember that Sam’s love interest, former Bletchley Park codebreaker and local MP Adam Wainwright, proposed to her in the final episode of the last series. Well, Sam is now happily married and finding her feet as a wife with a daunting role in local politics. Reunited with Foyle, however, also offers a surprising new working role.

While it has seemed like an eternity since we last spent time with Christoper Foyle (3 years to be exact), remember that Foyle ‘retired’ at the end of series 7 (series 6 in the U.S.). Retirement is short-lived, however, as someone is stealing documents from the Soviet Embassy. Folks over at MI-5 (not Harry Pearce) want him to investigate the suspected Russian who defected with the documents and the possible passing of secrets to the Commies. Doing her best to convince Foyle to join the ranks of MI-5 is Ellie Haddington (The Cafe, Spies of Warsaw).

Why Foyle, you’re asking at this point? Because his former driver, Samantha, has been photographed with a suspected Russian agent.

Time for you to unlock the inner artist and submit something from your own artistic Sherlock mind palace. The rules are quite simple. According to the organizers, choose a famous image be it artwork, photograph, or sculpture, and then reinterpret it as Sherlock. You can draw a picture, sculpt, cosplay, photo manip, pretty much any medium you are comfortable with. Deadline is 3 June.

Just in case you don’t remember Hopper’s most famous painting from 1942 from which ‘consulting piskies’ drew upon….
 

While nothing has been leaked as of yet with regards to a storyline for series ten, P1 New Tricks fans will no doubt remember the original ‘final’ episode of series nine where Gerry Standing (Dennis Waterman) and Steve McAndrew (Denis Lawson), who replaced James Bolam last year, head to Glasgow, where a new UCOS section is being set up. Seems as though police in Scotland want to set up their own version of UCOS and Gerry is just the man to tell them all about it. While in Scotland, the pair of ‘old dogs’ end up unofficially investigating the 1993 murder of a bookie which leads to the discovery of a child abuse scandal in a care home spanning two decades. The episode ends with Gerry admitting, “Scotland is beginning to grow on me.” UK viewers will remember the episode as being the one that was postponed a week from its original transmission in the wake of the Jimmy Savile investigation.
 

Principle filming began last Fall in Gibraltar where the series will kick off with a special two-part opening episode this Summer when BBC One begins transmitting, tentatively. Look for series ten to air in the States on public television stations in early 2014.

Up until now, technically, all we ‘officially’ know about the third series of Sherlock was that it would be comprised of three 90-minute films. The opening installment ‘The Empty Hearse’, written by Mark Gatiss, began finished principle filming in March. The second episode, written by Steve Thompson (a.k.a. the man who ripped your heart out in last season’s finale, “The Reichenbach Falls”) will be titled ‘The Sign of Three’. Now to the good stuff….

It’s only Wednesday, but this week has been like a trip to Disneyland for Sherlock fans worldwide. Monday was a day unlike any other day as filming for episode 2 began in the wee hours of the morning with a very cryptic tweet from series producer, Sue Vertue. Proof positive that a picture really is worth a thousand words…
 

Now, thanks to the great folks over at Digital Spy we have big news to share regarding the, yet untitled, episode 3. Written by series co-creator, Steven Moffat, the series 3 finale will be directed by Nick Hurran. Another name you may or may not know, but you definitely are familiar with his work. Best known for his Doctor Who episodes. In 2001, Hurran directed both the ‘The Girl Who Waited’ and ‘The God Complex’. In 2012, he helmed ‘Asylum of the Daleks’ and ‘The Angels Take Manhattan’. Hurran recently returned to the Who franchise for a fifth time where he is currently shooting the 50th anniversary special.

If this isn’t enough for one short week, before you ask, we’ve had more confirmations of a fourth series of Sherlock, starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. Stay tuned….

Shaun Evans, who was brilliant as the young ‘Endeavor’ Morse in the pilot episode, returns for the new films written by Inspector Lewis creator and Morse writer Russell Lewis. Roger Allam returns as Endeavour’s senior partner, Detective Inspector Fred Thursday. In addition, author Colin Dexter served as consultant for the series ensuring four weeks of greatness on both sides of the pond.

As they have for Sherlock, Spooks and Downton Abbey, the always brilliant Radio Times staff have created a not-to-be-missed walking tour of Oxford featuring all the favorite stops along the way of Endeavour Morse and Inspector Lewis.
 

Illustration for Radio Times courtesy of Katherine Baxter.

Word to the wise: While I would normally advise readers that ‘these are professionals, do noy try this at home’, I leave you with just a warning. The entire walking tour is about 7 miles long and will take about 3 hours. Don’t spend too much time at The Trout Inn, the favorite watering hole of CS Lewis, Lewis Carroll and Colin Dexter. That said, if you make it all the way, you can deservedly spend the remainder of your time at either the King’s Arms, the oldest pub in Oxford, or White Horse pubs, both of which were favorite Morse watering holes.

As we mentioned awhile back, principal filming began on Sherlock 3 on Monday, March 18. With that announcement came the official reveal of the first episode to go before the cameras, “The Empty Hearse”. Written by Mark Gatiss (who also plays a brilliant Mycroft in earlier Sherlock series), the premise of the first episode is said to be based on the original Sir Arthur Conan Doyle story “The Adventure Of The Empty House”, in which villain Colonel Sebastian Moran, Moriarty’s chief of staff and ‘the second most dangerous man in London’, is introduced.

Obviously, the first order of the day is to deal with how Sherlock faked his own death. Sherlock‘s co-conspirator, Gatiss, confirmed recently: “There’s certain things about “The Adventure of the Empty House” which feel set in stone because that’s how Sherlock comes back, but at the same time we feel free to invent and to introduce new stuff to it.”

The first new member of the cast for Sherlock is Tomi May, a British actor of Serbian descent, who has most recently been seen in BBC One’s Line of Duty.

On the heels of the title of episode 1 being revealed, comes the news of an episode 2 title! Written by Steve Thompson, who also wrote the brilliant season two finale, ‘The Reichenbach Fall’, the second episode will be titled ‘The Sign of Three’, based on Sir Athur Conan Doyle’s ‘The Sign of Four’”. Fans of Sherlock will immediately remember that in ‘Sign of Four’, this is where John Watson meets future wife Mary Morstan. Could this be where we see Amanda Abbington, perhaps? According to the Radio Times, Abbington does portray a character that “significantly impacts upon the lives of John and Sherlock“.

And, pure speculation on my part or just wishful thinking, with Moran being introduced in the first episode, lets hope for the return of Moriarty (Andrew Scott) in series 3. Flashbacks are ok…

Anyone fancy a guess as to a title for episode three?

For two series of BBC One’s Death in Paradise, Ben Miller (Worst Week of My Life, Primeval) was in heaven. Unfortunately, DI Richard Poole, the character that Miller portrays, is in hell. ‘Heaven’ for Miller because the series is filmed on the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. “Hell’ for DI Poole because he is trapped on the stunning beautiful but fictional Caribbean island paradise of Saint-Marie battling sun, sea and sand while solving murders and just trying to find a proper British cup of tea.
 

For UK viewers on BBC One, principal production filming begins on series three this month with both new and returning faces. As with series two, which saw guest stars the likes of Lucy Davis (Dawn Tinsley, The Office, Mathew Horne (Gavin from Gavin and Stacey, James Fleet (Vicar of Dibley) and Primeval star Hannah Spearritt, series three will see a number of familiar guest stars visiting the island. Out, sadly, is Ben Miller as DI Richard Poole. Miller said of his departure: “I have absolutely loved my time on Death in Paradise and am sad to be leaving such a successful show, however DI Poole has made no secret of his struggle with the Caribbean heat, so I felt now was a good time to put him out of his misery!“.

In, however, and replacing Miller will be Kris Marshall (My Family, Love Actually, Citizen Khan) starring as DI Humphrey Goodman. Described as bright, but rather disorganised and gawky, Goodman is stuck in a mid-life rut and is looking to find a new life and fresh start. Returning will be Sara Martins (DS Camille Bordey), Danny John-Jules (police chief, Dwayne Myers), Gary Carr (young investigator, Fidel Best) and Don Warrington (police commissioner. Selwyn Patterson).

Belinda Campbell, EP for Red Planet Pictures, had high praise for both the outgoing and incoming DI’s: “Ben Miller is an excellent actor and has played the part of DI Richard Poole magnificently for two series, and we’re very sad to be saying goodbye. However we’re thrilled to be welcoming Kris Marshall on board who we know will be brilliant in the role of Humphrey. He will bring with him disheveled charm, sparkle, quick wit, and a razor-sharp intelligence in solving crimes.”

Series one and two have attracted sizable audience figures in the UK. Sizable enough to warrant the commissioning of a third series. In the U.S., a number of public television stations have begun running the series with more set to come on in the not-too-distant future. Check it out if you haven’t yet. Well worth your time.

As we reported in 2012 when ITV announced production would begin in October, the titles of the final five adaptations of the 13th and final series were to include Labours of Hercules, Dead Man’s Folly, The Big Four, Elephants Can Remember and Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case. With production set to wrap up in the next couple of months, we’ve learned that with Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case, even though it was the final chapter for Poirot written by Christie in 1940 but not released until 1975, it was to be the first targeted for completion in the production cycle.
 

In Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case, Poirot (David Suchet) and Captain Hastings (Hugh Fraser) are together again for the first time since 2001 where they will return to Styles Court, the scene of their first case together, where Poirot declares that one of the guests is in fact a serial killer. ‘Guests’ included Helen Baxendale (Friends, Cold Feet, Dirk Gently, Inspector George Gently), Anne Reid (Coronation Street, Ladies of Letters, Last Tango in Halifax) and Alice Orr-Ewing (Blandings).

In The Big Four, Poirot, sidekick Captain Hastings, secretary Miss Lemon and Scotland Yard’s Inspector Japp will return for the Mark Gatiss / Ian Hallard adaptation set in the world of global espionage which sees Poirot investigate murder against the backdrop of the impending Second World War.

While the world will, collectively, be ‘gutted when currently tentative UK transmission plans call for a Fall premiere on ITV1 and a 2014 premiere on PBS in the States, ITV’s producer, Michele Buck, said: “We can promise the final five Poirot films will be a fitting tribute to a much-loved literary character. When the ending comes it’ll be very dramatic and incredibly emotional. We’ve been on a remarkable journey with Poirot.”

Remarkable, indeed. But, I’ll still be gutted.

Set in 1965, the series one-off centered around the early career of Endeavour Morse who, after leaving his Oxford college without taking a degree, spent a short time in the Royal Corps of Signals, and then joined the police.

Based on the strong audience response to the pilot, Christmas will be coming early on both sides of the pond as four new films written by Lewis creator and Morse writer Russell Lewis have been filmed with the first premiering next Sunday (14 April) at 8:00p on ITV1. The series will have its U.S. premiere on PBS’ Masterpiece series beginning July 7 t 8:00p CT/9:00p ET. Also returning will be Roger Allam (The Jury, Parade’s End, The Thick of It) as Endeavour’s senior partner, Detective Inspector Fred Thursday.

ITV Studios has just released the first trailer from the four-feature length films showcasing the talents of Mark Davis and Barnaby Robson. Episode 1, “Girl” will air next Sunday on ITV1 and premiere July 7 on PBS in the States. Set. DVR. Now.
 

 
What do you think? Are you ready for some Endeavour?