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Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories and novels have had numerous—quite literally uncountable—adaptations: television shows, movies, and other books don’t quite encapsulate the reach of these beloved adventures. Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, Robert Downey Jr., Stephen Moffat, and others have all tried their hand at creative adaptations of the characters and settings, to variable success.
Among all the adaptations that have been made, there is one that stands out: Granada Television’s production of three seasons, each one adapting one of Doyle’s books of short stories. It was made in 1984, but it still holds up today.
Jeremy Brett As Sherlock Holmes
Jeremy Brett’s devotion to the role of one of the greatest detectives in fiction isn’t news to any fan of this show. While what he did wasn’t quite method acting, he did absorb some of Holmes’ less healthy personality traits into his own personality.
While this is never ideal, it did seem to help him understand the character he was playing to an immense degree; his mannerisms were somewhere between manic and dignified, his intensity juxtaposed brilliantly with the silent, morose lows Holmes fell into at times. His reactions—to a beautiful woman outsmarting him, to a pompous Belgian king, to a clever client who proved they could hold their own—were unparalleled; even when he was in the background of the shot, he was still convincingly Sherlock Holmes.
The Multifaceted Portrayal Of Watson
Whether the viewers watch Edward Hardwicke or David Burke play John Watson, the way Michael Cox wrote Holmes’ roommate and biographer was unlike any portrayal at the time (or, arguably, since). Like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s original, this Watson wasn’t the bumbling, incompetent fool that some adaptations have shown (the only time it kind of worked was in the intentionally funny Holmes and Watson).
Instead, both Hardwicke and Burke managed to capture both the intelligence and the heart of Conan’s doctor. While he’s still in awe of Sherlock Holmes’ deductive abilities, Watson reminds the audience multiple times that he was a military doctor once upon a time and knows his own mind.
Wonderful Set Design
19th-century London isn’t a stranger to adaptations in the nostalgic-for-the-past world, and it’s been seen in multiple shows, from Enola Holmes to The Irregulars. For Sherlock Holmes adaptations, Victorian London is practically a given, though there have been exceptions.
The crew for this show, though, went above and beyond in depicting the time in which Holmes and Watson would have lived: the dusty streets, hansom cabs, and clothing are all meticulously picked out so that viewers feel as though they are temporarily walking the streets of 1890s London. The apartment on 221B Baker Street is lovingly recreated down to the details of Persian slippers, letters pinned to the mantelpiece by a jackknife, and even the layout.
Loyalty To Canon
Loyalty to the source material doesn’t always mean a show is great. Sometimes, a show that takes risks, turns the source material on its head, and explores new things in that world end up being fantastic! To be considered a good adaptation, though, is often to be considered a faithful representation of what happened in the original material.
Many of the short stories Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote made it into this series over its ten-year run, and even a production of one of the novels. Quotes are often verbatim from the books, and, at least in the earlier episodes, the short stories are faithfully adapted.
It Improved On Sherlock Holmes
No plaid deerstalker hats or Inverness capes here! No disrespect to Basil Rathbone, of course, but while the previous adaptations of Sherlock Holmes weren’t wrong, per se, they weren’t always the most nuanced. Granada changed that.
All throughout the show, there’s an intentional humanization of Holmes, something absent from most portrayals except, perhaps, Ian McKellan's—they show that he’s a logical deductive reasoner with an interest in crime, but he’s also a man loyal to his friends who genuinely cares about helping the people who come to him for help. Partly due to Jeremy Brett’s great acting, Holmes here is a well-rounded character with well-explored talents and flaws, and, perhaps most importantly, emotions.
An Emphasis On Holmes and Watson's Friendship
You can’t have a Sherlock Holmes story without including the most iconic duo in English literature! From Holmes’ touching faith in Watson’s friendship in “The Dying Detective” to Watson’s enduring concern over Holmes’ health, the series places an emphasis on portraying what feels like a real, mutual friendship.
Rather than the more stereotypical version of Watson following Holmes around in awe and watching him solve crimes and explain them to awed onlookers, Granada’s television show included enough jokes, mutual respect, and concern for the other to convincingly get across the real affection these two had for each other.
Presenting Social Issues Of The Time
Sherlock Holmes was always a detective who helped the ordinary person with their ordinary problems, whether that was a woman trapped in an exploitative relationship with her husband, or a man applying for a shady company specifically looking for workers with red hair. There were exceptions—the Great Detective was, after all, equally great in demand—but he rarely took on cases only for the money.
Holmes could be cold, precise, and logical, but he also had a great sense of justice, and many of his cases revolved around helping the common person when the police were too inept to do so. Michael Cox’s show placed emphasis on many of these aspects of the stories; for example, in stories like "The Copper Beeches" or "The Solitary Cyclist," the vulnerability of women (as well as their resourcefulness) in Victorian society is a focus.
Gayle Hunnicutt As Irene Adler
Gayle Hunnicutt's portrayal of Irene Adler is one of the most humanizing of all her adaptations–a common theme in this version. She’s intelligent and cunning, a worthy adversary of Holmes, one of the few enemies who manage to outwit him. Apart from that, she is also kind, compassionate, and elegant. Her actions aren’t the result of a manipulating, selfish woman, they are the result of a woman trying to get away from her past and move on with her life.
Granada’s writing of Irene Adler is a refreshing breath of air in a world where the only woman to outsmart Sherlock Holmes has been villainized, dramatized, and completely rewritten.