“They are not all successes, Watson,” said he.
Welcome to our Seasonal TV & Radio Bulletin. Unlike Sherlock Holmes, we can’t be everywhere, so must restrict ourselves to the UK/Ireland. Nevertheless, we trust readers elsewhere will find something of interest here, and, wherever you are, the detective in some shape or form will be accessible on your local TV and/or radio too. You’ll not really find previews or reviews as such here, we’ll leave that for others to do.
Seasonal TV for Holmesians
It’s not all about the new Sherlock (due New Year’s Day) in the next few weeks. If you’ve access to TCM, there is a crop of Rathbone and Bruce “classics” to pick from over the weekend of 21/22 December.
Elementary Season 2 takes a break for the duration (once Episode 9 is shown on Tuesday 17, and again on Friday 20 December) but for die-hard fans, or those who just want to catch-up or catch it for the first time, Sky Living is doing a complete re-run of Season 1, at a rate of two a day (though see 30 December for an exception to this), starting 24 December.
Taking the view that you can never have enough Sherlock, Alibi is giving Series 1 another go, starting 26 December.
Not much joy in all that if you don’t have Virgin or Sky access, so good to see that the festive spirit is alive and well on ITV3, where the classic Granada Sherlock Holmes series, having been virtually hibernating of late (although see Sunday 15th), is alive and well, as from 28 December. One drawback, though, is that they are nearly all early starts, some very early indeed. No doubt those of you who don’t want to be “knocked up” (with apologies to our American readers) at such ungodly hours will resort to their recorders or catch-up. Also, we don’t know the episode details of The Memoirs series scheduled, but hey, we can’t do all the work for you. All the ITV3 programmes listed below are from the Granada series, by the way, including some of the longer 2 hour episodes.
While not SH, it’s pleasing to note that The Lost World (the best known non-SH Conan Doyle work) is getting a showing on the Drama channel on 30 December. Not sure as to the year of this particular production (anyone want to tell us?). If you didn’t already know, Drama is Freeview and Freesat accessible. On 26 December, Film4 (Freeview/Freesat) is showing Young Sherlock Holmes (1985).
No guarantees that we’ve managed to capture everything in the Guide that follows; we may have seen but not observed, yet again. If there’s anything missing, do let us know and we’ll pass it on. You can always check-out all the programmes listed using the links in our TV Lounge and, of course, whatever listings magazines you choose to read. The programmes shown on ITV3 are all from the Granada Sherlock Holmes series.
Since first putting this Guide together we’ve discovered that RTE1 are showing Sherlock Holmes, the 2009 blockbuster from Warner Bros, at the very start of the New Year. This was a Sky Movies exclusive (re UK) until fairly recently so this appears (are we right?) to be the first screening on terrestrial TV in these islands. A little bird tells us that one of the big five UK TV channels will probably be airing this also before the New Year is too far gone. We’ve added the listing to the TV Guide which follows.
One more thing! Don’t forget to check out our Radio Guide which follows the TV Guide!
TV Guide
Saturday 21 December
No less than seven helpings of Basil and Nigel to feast upon in a virtual daylong banquet on TCM. The menu includes six Universal Sherlocks and one from the earlier Fox series, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1939).
Sunday 22
On TCM, there’s a repeat serving of three of the Universal Sherlocks which were broadcast the previous day.
Sherlock Holmes: a Game of Shadows (2011) gets another airing on Sky Action/Adventure at 11.15pm.
Christmas Eve
SHERLOCK 3 MINI-EPISODE Watch Here!
Also on BBC iPlayer, then at intervals until 2 January.
Elementary at 7pm on Sky Living. Season 1 Rerun starts. Episodes 1 & 2.
Christmas Day
Elementary at 7pm on Sky Living. Episodes 3 & 4.
Boxing Day
Young Sherlock Holmes (1985) on Film4 at 2.40pm.
Elementary at 7pm on Sky Living. Episodes 5 & 6.
Sherlock Series 1, Episode 1 at 9pm on Alibi. Repeat Run.
Friday 27 December
Elementary at 7pm on Sky Living. Episodes 7 & 8.
Sherlock Series 1 Episode 2 at 9pm on Alibi.
Sherlock Holmes and the Leading Lady (1991) at 9pm on True Christmas.
Saturday 28 December
The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes at 6.20am on ITV3.
Elementary at 7pm on Sky Living. Episodes 9 & 10.
Sherlock Series 1 Episode 3 at 9pm on Alibi.
Sherlock Holmes and the Leading Lady (1991) at 9pm on True Christmas.
Sunday 29 December
The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes at 6am on ITV3.
Elementary at 7pm on Sky Living. Episodes 11 & 12.
Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Whitechapel Vampire (2002) at 9pm on True Christmas.
Monday 30
The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes at 6.20am on ITV 3.
The Lost World at 4.45pm on Drama.
Elementary at 8pm on Sky Living. Episode 13.
New Year’s Eve
The Eligible Bachelor at 9.40am on ITV3.
Elementary on Sky Living at 7pm. Episodes 13 (again!) & 14
New Year’s Day
NEW! Sherlock Series 3
Episode 1: ‘The Empty Hearse’ at 9pm on BBC One.
SHERLOCK 3 INTERACTIVE TRAILER
The Hound of the Baskervilles at 9.20am on ITV3.
Tom and Jerry meet Sherlock Holmes (2010) at 10am and 4pm on Boomerang.
Elementary at 7pm on Sky Living. Episodes 15 & 16.
Thursday 2 January
The Sign of Four at 10am on ITV3.
Elementary at 6pm on Sky Living. Episodes 17 & 18.
Friday 3
The Last Vampire at 10.30am on ITV3.
Sherlock Holmes: a Game of Shadows (2011) at 11.40am and 8pm on Sky Showcase.
Elementary at 7pm on Sky Living. Episodes 19 & 20.
Sherlock at 9pm on BBC Three. Series 3, Episode 1 (repeat).
Sherlock Holmes (2009) at 9.30pm on RTE1
TV Links are here! TV Lounge
Radio Guide
Every so often, Auntie Beeb manages to give us a proper “Holmes Service” (if you are too young to know or remember – the BBC Home Service was the predecessor of Radio4, which came into being in 1967) on our wireless sets during the festive season. This time around, Radio4 Extra, while not exactly showering us with presents, is nevertheless delivering a treat in the form of two episodes from the celebrated Sherlock Holmes series starring Clive Merrison and Michael Williams. These two are from The Return series, and it can’t be a coincidence (can it?) that it ties-in with the new Sherlock season on BBC One, which also has a Return theme, and which starts on 1 January 2014.
‘The Empty House’ is on Thursday 2 January at 11.15am, also 9.15pm, and then early the following morning at 4.15am. ‘The Norwood Builder,’ on Friday 3 January, adopts the same time slots.
Radio 4 Extra has what amounts to virtually a “Richard Briers’ Day,” although it hasn’t given it a name tag, on Christmas Day. We’ve counted nearly twenty programmes across the schedule, in tribute to the late actor who died in February.
Among the early afternoon line-up is a 15 minute programme, at 1pm, in which Michael Chaplin, the writer of Two Pipe Problems talks about the whimsical little series, which starred Briers and Stanley Baxter. This will be followed by a repeat of one of the best episodes, ‘The Case of the Missing Meerschaum’ at 1.15pm. It was first aired on Radio4 in August 2011. You’ll find more details about all this on the Radio4 Extra website.
Check out our Radio Room for all the broadcasting links re programmes mentioned here.
Radio Links are here! Radio Room
Disclaimer: A reminder that the website Editor takes no responsibility for any mistakes in the above Guide, not that there are any, as far as he knows. Please email ASAP if you spot any mistakes whatsoever, also any omissions.