Tag Archives: BBC

Comic Con: ‘Sherlock’ time travels to Victorian era in upcoming Christmas special (video inside)

Image cache, News, Television, Video, , , , , , , , ,

Sherlock loves to go on long breaks between series, and so fans of the BBC/PBS show were pleasantly surprised when executive producer Steven Moffat dropped a first look at the upcoming Christmas special. The one-off episode drops Sherlock Holmes (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Dr. John Watson (Martin Freeman) into the Victorian era, the very same era where Holmes and Watson do their investigating in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s books. Moffat has no explanation for the time jump; it just is.

“We discovered there was some precedent for doing Sherlock in the Victorian era,” Moffat told the Comic Con crowd. “When we first did Sherlock, press asked how can Sherlock possibly survive in the world with an iPhone. And when doing the Victorian [era special], the press came in and said how can he do this without his iPhone?” He later added, “It’s very much the show you know. It’s the Sherlock as you know it, but in the correct era. It’s one of the best ones we’ve made. I think it’s really terrific.”

Eye the detecting duo in their 19th Century garb above. Be sure to then jump after the break and watch 1:27 preview that is very meta, indeed. Also shown at Comic Con and posted after the break is a special video starring Andrew Scott (aka Sherlock‘s Moriarty) addressing the crowd with a wink and a nod.

There’s no date set in stone quite yet for the Christmas special; Moffat hopes to premiere it “in the next year.” What’s neat is that in addition to airing on television, it will also come to the big screen in select theatres globally.

Curious about Sherlock season 4? Moffat hasn’t even finished writing it yet (pity!), but he warns fans of “shattering emotionally draining you’ll-never-be-the-same-again cliffhangers” that will “sucker punch you into emotional devastation.” Great.

[Via Deadline; EW] Continue reading Comic Con: ‘Sherlock’ time travels to Victorian era in upcoming Christmas special (video inside) →

BBC renews ‘The Fall’ for third & final season; CBS holds onto three sitcoms

News, Television, , , , , , , , ,

Quick updates here on the TV series renewal front. On Tuesday, the BBC made it official: Allan Cubitt’s addicting and binge-tastic drama The Fall will return for a third and final season.

“The cliff-hanger ending of season two was conceived in the hope of further exploring the characters and the themes that are at the heart of The Fall. We’re grateful to be given this opportunity by the BBC,” said creator-writer-director Cubitt in a statement.

At the end of season two (spoiler alert!), the game of cat and mouse between Gillian Anderson’s detective superintendent Stella Gibson and Jamie Dornan’s serial killer Paul Spector finally came to a gripping conclusion. That massive cliffhanger Cubitt’s referring to? In the final moments, Spector is shot and fights for consciousness in Gibson’s arms.

Will The Fall live on after a third season? According to BBC Drama controller Ben Stephenson, it doesn’t appear so. “The story is far from over. Allan has known the end game from the beginning – the cat and mouse game between Gillian and Jamie has one last act to play out. Who will win?,” he postulated (I added the emphasis there).

What can viewers expect to unfold when The Fall returns? The action continues in “Belfast as the complex relationship between Det Supt Stella Gibson and Paul Spector intensifies and the story of the investigation into the murders becomes more “complex and intricate”.” Read into that what you will. And as soon as the BBC announces its U.S. launch on Netflix, you’ll hear about it here. Watch a teaser after the break.

Elsewhere, CBS has renewed sitcoms Mom, Mike & Molly, and 2 Broke Girls for a third, sixth, and fifth season, respectively. Continue reading BBC renews ‘The Fall’ for third & final season; CBS holds onto three sitcoms →

‘Sherlock’ renewed for series four, a special in the works

News, Television, , , , ,

It’s official: Everyone’s favorite high-functioning sociopath and his trusty sidekick are returning for more adventures. Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman are set to reprise their roles as William Sherlock Scott Holmes and Dr. John Hamish Watson, respectively, in a fourth series plus a one-off special. In other words, four feature-length installments of Sherlock are in the works!

Series co-creator, writer and executive producer Steven Moffat: “A special, plus a new series of three episodes – it’s a record-breaking run! Of course, it’s far too early to say what’s coming, but we’re reasonably confident that the very next thing to happen to Sherlock and John, is the very last thing you’d expect…”

Co-creator, writer, executive producer, and co-star Mark Gatiss: “Series Four! At last ! It’s always special to return to Sherlock but this time it’s even more special as we’re doing… a Special! Not only THAT, we’ll then be shooting three more episodes which will take Sherlock and John Watson into deeper and darker water than ever before. The whole Sherlock team are terrifically excited to return for four new adventures. The Game is on – again!”

Executive producer Sue Vertue: “It’s taken a little while to get the dates sorted as none of the boys are exactly sitting back twiddling their thumbs but there was unanimous goodwill to make this work, so we’re thrilled that 221b is going to be inhabited again.”

Though it did incorporate some head-scratching cases inspired by the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the most recent series of Sherlock deviated from the show’s usual formula in order to really explore the relationship between the sleuth partners. It was all handled with grace and humor (a Sherlock staple), and now that the show has truly defined their harmonious accord it can test its limits. In the words of Gatiss, The Game is on–again!

The special shoots in January 2015 (with rumored signs pointing to a Christmas 2015 air date), and production on series four will begin later next year (with a likely 2016 air date). What I should have said before: The Wait is on–again!

[Via BBC]

TV teasers: BBC’s ‘Orphan Black’, ‘Sherlock’ & HBO’s ‘Girls’

News, Television, Video, , , , , , , , , , ,

Black is back. Orphan Black, that is. The Tatiana Maslany Show returns April 19 on BBC America and even though this teaser doesn’t feature new footage in does not fail in ramping up anticipation for what’s to come, not in the slightest. The latest season 2 logline hints at more clone mysteries and some long-anticipated answers

Season 2 hits the ground running with Sarah in a desperate race to find her missing daughter Kira. Her scorched earth tactics spark a war with pro-clone Rachel, dividing and imperiling all the clones. As Sarah discovers more about her past, mysterious newcomers appear, but can they be trusted?

Jump after the break to watch teasers for Sherlock and Girls. Continue reading TV teasers: BBC’s ‘Orphan Black’, ‘Sherlock’ & HBO’s ‘Girls’ →

Comic Con: Martin Freeman & Benedict Cumberbatch appear at ‘Sherlock’ panel

Hilarity, News, Television, Video, , , ,

Comic Con hosted a Sherlock panel, but its two big stars Martin Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch couldn’t make it in person. So they both filmed prerecorded bits for those in attendance and you can watch what they saw in the clip embedded above. Freeman is rocking some scraggly hair as he finishes shooting The Hobbit in New Zealand and Cumberbatch explains how he survived his big fall from the series 2 finale (or he attempts to, at least).

As you’re enjoying this humorous clip, know that lots more Sherlock is on the way. “As long as everyone wants to keep doing it, we’ll keep doing it,” shared creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss and producer Sue Vertue. “There is something lovely about the idea of Benedict and Martin aged 55, around the same fireplace, becoming the same age we associate with Holmes and Watson,” added Gatiss.

TV reminder: ‘Sherlock’ returns tonight!

News, Television, , , , , ,

The brilliant contemporary Sherlock returns to US airwaves tonight. The Brits were privy to the three episodes that make up series two of the Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss intellectual dramedy earlier this year in January, and now with springtime in America it’s our turn to revisit the wildly entertaining adventures of Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock Holmes and Martin Freeman’s Dr. John Watson.

Tonight’s series 2 premiere is entitled “A Scandal in Belgravia” and the log line goes like this: Picking up from season 1’s gripping cliff-hanger, the whip-smart dominatrix Irene Adler (Lara Pulver, True Blood) takes on Sherlock in a game he is ill-prepared to fight…love.

The three episodes will run consecutively over the course of three weeks (May 6, 13, and 20) on PBS at 9PM as part of the Public Broadcasting Service’s Masterpiece Mystery hour. Click here to view a schedule highlighting what’s in store this season for Sherlock. Don’t fret; Sherlock’s arch-nemesis Moriarty still looms as a major threat.

‘Sherlock’ will return for a third series

News, Television, , , ,

There’s still four months before the second series of Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss’ adaptation of Sherlock Holmes airs in the US, but the co-creators of the critically acclaimed show just couldn’t keep their traps shut. “Yes of course there’s going to be a third series — it was commissioned at the same time as the second. Gotcha!” tweeted Moffat. This news became widespread shortly after the second series finished airing its three-episode arc in the UK on BBC. The one question that now remains, of course, is if Sherlock stars Benedict Cumberbatch (Holmes) and Martin Freeman (Watson) will return to reprise their roles. Both are blowing up in the biz. Cumberbatch recently starred in War Horse and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, and soon he’ll be in Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit (alongside Freeman) and J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek sequel. But don’t be alarmed. A UK rep told Deadline and reassures fans, “I’m sure he [Cumberbatch] would love to do a third series. It’s very unlikely they would have Sherlock without Sherlock.”

Sherlock fans, rejoice! Series 2 premieres in the US on PBS on May 6.

[Via Deadline]

BBC presents another fascinating look at our world with ‘Human Planet’

Television, Video, , , , , ,

After examining our world’s oceans in The Blue Planet (2001) and the intricacies of nature in Planet Earth (2006), BBC is preparing to unveil its next big documentary that “marvels at mankind’s incredible relationship with nature in the world today.”  It’s called Human Planet.

Uniquely in the animal kingdom, humans have managed to adapt and thrive in every environment on Earth. Each episode takes you to the extremes of our planet: the arctic, mountains, oceans, jungles, grasslands, deserts, rivers and even the urban jungle. Here you will meet people who survive by building complex, exciting and often mutually beneficial relationships with their animal neighbours and the hostile elements of the natural world.

The production crew behind the upcoming doc filmed in around 80 locations using state-of-the-art HD cameras.  So you can expect the visuals to be stunningly beautiful, but isn’t that the norm for BBC/Discovery documentary series?

Human Planet will air in eight parts.  It began broadcasing January 13 on BBC One in the UK and an international release will follow shortly after the series ends there.  Watch the trailer for it above, and look after the break for two more sneak peeks.

[Via Gizmodo] Continue reading BBC presents another fascinating look at our world with ‘Human Planet’ →

The world’s heath & wealth over 200 years get spectacularly visualized

Education, Video, , , , , , , ,

Using highly effective visuals in augmented reality animation, BBC’s Hans Rosling tells the story of the world in 200 countries over 200 years using 120,000 numbers, in just four minutes.  More specifically, he plots life expectancy against income for every country since 1810, and the visually splendid data reveals interesting rises and drops in correspondence to major historical events such as world wars.  Go on mash play and educate yourself.

[Via Gawker]

Experimenting with concentrated sunlight results in the deterioration of virtually anything

science, Television, Video, , , , ,

Can’t get enough of BBC’s Bang Goes the Theory series.  This time host Jem Stansfield travels to the Solar Furnace Research Facility in Southern France to witness the incredible power generated by highly concentrated sunlight.  At the core of the “sunshine” temperature can rise to 6,300 degrees Fahrenheit and is powerful enough to almost instantly burn through wood and even melt a rock!  Watch a dangerously cool demonstration above.

[Via Gizmodo]