You can’t keep having Watson being amazed.’ But you have to have new people to be impressed by Sherlock. Watson humanises him, and Sherlock gives Watson his mojo back. MG ‘When we first meet Sherlock, he’s a psychopath. But he’s able to find the humour and pathos in being ordinary.’ Martin looks like a very ordinary man, even though in real life he’s quite unique. He’s never going to be cast as your dull neighbour, he’ll always be somebody odd and different, because he has an extraordinary face and the voice of an entire brass band. SM ‘Benedict is exotic and extraordinary. Being mates won’t get you through the next few months – you also need those symbiotic working relationships.’ MF ‘The first time Ben and I read together, something clicked. But it’s joyous that it happens, and it’s how Mark and I got started: responding to shows by thinking up our own.’ SM ‘We’re not engaged in a dialogue with “Sherlock” fans, much as we love them. MF ‘The danger is that you start playing what the audience wants. SM ‘We would have celebrated an audience of 4 million and an award from somewhere in Poland! We would never have expected “Sherlock” to be a rock star of a show where young girls are squealing about it.’ But I’ve got a big box of gifts ! I was sent a big metal piece spelling my name in Korean, which is rather beautiful. In anyone’s work, the arrival of 400 19-year-old girls or boys doesn’t make things run more smoothly. MF ‘Filming in Gower Street is like a gig. We’d always thought it would have to have more repercussions than that.’ He’s briefly angry, but forgives him pretty quickly. In the original story, “The Empty House”, Sherlock turns up in a disguise, reveals himself, and Watson faints. Mark Gatiss ‘There’s a lot of moving stuff: the reunion makes my hair stand on end. I think it’s lazy for people to do that.’ But I didn’t want him to just be brilliant, to have some easily tagged aspect of his character that was on the spectrum of autism or Asperger’s. And Steven said, “What do you mean? He’s just brilliant!”. ‘The first conversation I had with Steven was “How did this happen?”. Seeing how he copes with multimedia and pop culture is amusing, but it’s really interesting to understand him. And you find out a lot more about why he is the way he is.

But John is quite annoyed.’īC ‘Sherlock’s been away two years and he’s rusty about human relationships, especially with his best friend and with London. Sherlock’s return brings madness and the excitement John only really felt in a war zone – only war zones aren’t as entertaining as Sherlock. Martin Freeman ‘As far as John is concerned, Sherlock’s dead and he’s moved on – fallen in love with this woman he hopes to marry. How bromantic is the reunion between Holmes and Watson?

The theories have been elaborate and brilliant, but there are only so many ways to avoid a pavement if you’re falling towards it – he doesn’t turn into a bat or anything.

Steven Moffat ‘Most of London was watching when we shot the reveal! It’s a puzzle with an answer, and sometimes the puzzle’s more fun than the answer. Some will be disappointed, some will be amazed.’ Benedict Cumberbatch ‘I’m terrified about.

Review sherlock the empty hearse