The Red Headed League

Holmes and Watson are intrigued by the peculiar comical case of Jabez Wilson. A down on his luck pawn broker, who at his assistant's behest applies to join The Red Headed League.

They will pay a princely 4 pounds per week to the right candidate for some nominal work. Copying entries from an an encyclopedia.

After a few weeks The Red Headed League suddenly disbanded. Wilson thinks he has been made a fool of. Holmes thinks something more serious is at play here and Wilson's assistant, who started employment for him at half wages, is the key.

I have read the short story and I watched this when it was originally transmitted. In all subsequent viewings I cannot overlook that this episode has been padded to the hilt.

Holmes at a concert, Holmes and some people waiting in the dark for someone to break into the vault. Even adding Professor Moriarty into the story so it can segue into the next story.

I did enjoy Eric Porter's sinister appearance. Roger Hammond is suitably comical as the bemused Jabez Wilson but this was struggling to fit its 55 minutes running length.

I do chuckle at the notion that some time in 1985. Every red headed man in England was employed as an extra by Granada Studios.

It's foolish to say this episode comes during a purple patch for the show, hard to imagine, but it does, almost every single episode in this series is great, this is perhaps my favourite. It is whimsical and amusing on the surface, but underneath it's cunning, sinister and fiendishly clever. The presence of Professor Moriarty always adds that extra something, and although he's not visible for very long, his presence is strong, I love Moriarty's final scene, where you see him utterly frustrated by Holmes. Holmes at his cleverest.

Wonderful characters all of them, I particularly loved Richard Wilson as Ross, donned in a red wig he was terrific. Tim McInnerny also brilliant, that great scene where he reveals his identity. Terrific music and production values as always.

Pay the proper wage! There's a lesson in that. 10/10

This is perhaps the best known Holmes story next to "The Hound of the Baskervilles." It involves a man, Jabez Wilson, who has been given a strange job, copying pages from the Encyclopedia Britannica in longhand. He sits at a desk in a stark room and receives payment beyond that fitting the job. Not only that, he has gotten the job because he passed muster, competing against other men with red hair. He actually went to interviews where the authenticity of the red-headed gentlemen was checked. Now, something has changed and he decides to bring his case to Holmes and Watson. One has to accept that the potential criminal enterprise has become so convoluted as to draw attention. Still, it is a delightful story which has stood the test of time. Like "The Blue Carbuncle," we are never to take anything as a life or death situation. Conan Doyle had a sense of humor. Jeremy Brett coolly investigates this with his deep tones filling the room at 221B. Well acted and portrayed with relish.

You can sense Holmes figured out early a mastermind was involved. I like very little is explained until approaching the end. I really enjoy a detective mystery how this story was laid out., then revealed. Some reviewers are commenting the episodes aren't true to the original story. Well, to me, Jeremy Brett is the perfect Sherlock Holmes. No one comes close.

I am a big fan of the Granada Sherlock Holmes series as I have said many, many times. This may not be exactly faithful to the original story, while Moriaty was a very welcome presence compared to the original story he feels rather thrown in and there are some very memorable and humorous bits of dialogue that didn't quite make it on screen.

However, on its own terms The Red Headed League is very, very good and reinforces what I love so much about the series. As always, a lot of care is taken into how well constructed the adaptation is visually. The photography is very skillful, the costumes beautifully tailored and the scenery and sets wonderfully meticulous and atmospheric. I was too taken with how Sarasate was portrayed and the lengths that were made to make the actor look like the violin virtuoso.

The music is once again wonderful, with themes that are both beautiful and haunting. The story is well paced and interesting, the dialogue is sometimes humorous but very often thought-provoking and the direction is solid. The acting is excellent as is consistently the case with this series. Jeremy Brett with his towering presence and gritty baritone of a voice gives a very commanding title role performance, and David Burke is a thoughtful and composed Watson. Eric Porter also does very well with his appearance as Moriaty, his performance is somewhat brief but that was a decision for the better, too much Moriaty and I personally don't think this would have been as effective.

In conclusion, maybe not as strong as The Norwood Builder, The Crooked Man and The Speckled Band, but a strong episode. 9/10 Bethany Cox