Murder Rooms: The Dark Beginnings of Sherlock Holmes

Murder Rooms: The Dark Beginnings of Sherlock Holmes

The original Murder Rooms: The Dark Beginnings of Sherlock Holmes had its UK premiere in January of 2000. In September 2001, the BBC aired an all-new series of four stories based on the further fictional adventures of young Arthur Conan Doyle and his mentor, Dr. Joseph Bell. Returning as Dr. Bell in this new series is Scots actor Ian Richardson, with Charles Edwards replacing Robin Laing as the youthful Arthur Conan Doyle. US broadcast dates on PBS are set for July-August 2002.

"And having played Holmes helped enormously, because the screenplay incorporated bits of Conan Doyle's writing. One scene in particular, where Conan Doyle gives Bell his father's watch and asks him to describe the owner, is lifted completely from The Sign of Four, one of the Sherlock Holmes films I did make. So I didn't even have to memorise my lines. It all came back."
- Ian Richardson on playing Dr. Bell in the pilot

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Original UK broadcast on BBC1:
The Patient's Eyes - September 4, 2001
The Photographer's Chair - September 11, 2001
The Kingdom of Bones - September 18, 2001
The White Knight Strategem - September 25, 2001

New Episodes on PBS in North America in July - August 2002

Complimenting the television programs are a new series of stand alone novels by Murder Rooms creator David Pirie. The first novel, The Patient's Eyes was released in the Spring of 2001. This will be followed by Cream in 2002 and The Death of Sherlock Holmes in 2003. Read our review of The Patient's Eyes by clicking here or order the hardcover from Amazon UK by clicking here. A paperback edition of The Patient's Eyes was scheduled for October 2001 publication.

Visit the Murder Rooms website for more information here.

PBS listed broadcast dates for North America:
The Patient's Eyes - July 22, 2002
The Photographer's Chair - July 29, 2002
The Kingdom of Bones - August 5, 2002
The White Knight Strategem - August 12, 2002

Note:
Monday nights as well as the usual Thursday night Mystery timeslot.

Visit PBS for more programme information by clicking here.