The Speckled Band

I first came upon the Holmes story "The Adventure of the Speckled Band" in high school, as well as having Conan Doyle's historical novel "The White Company", which I've mercifully forgotten completely, as required reading.

I saw this episode when it was recently telecast on the City University Station (CUNY) in their summer Holmes series mostly from the Grenada versions.

The rather familiar early episode both in the Conan Doyle canon and in the Grenada Brett series almost looks that you have to be a Jeremy-something to work on this series as in the listing below of the dramatizer as well as the villain: dramatized by Jeremy Paul, Dr. Grimesby Roylott: Jeremy Kemp with the main actresses: Helen Stoner: Rosalyn Landor and Julia Stoner: Denise Armon

A quite straightforward approach here with Watson being played by David Burke. Perhaps it's because I was more familiar with Edward Hardwicke's Watson, that I much preferred him over Burke and I rather miss him here. But all of the acting was excellent especially by the two Jeremies and Ms. Landor. Rosalie Williams, as usual, played Mrs.Hudson, the landlady.

The suspense is nicely sustained to the end even if you are familiar with the story and I highly recommend this version.

Of all episodes, this is the most terrifying and chilling story. Because an individual's twisted mind and greed goes to the extent he does not hesitate taking the lives of two innocent step daughters. Jeremy Brett is of course excellent in sensing the danger and empthasies the horror faced by Helen Stoner the part excellently played by the young actor Rosalyn Landor. David Burke as Watson in the first season supplements well with Holmes' characterThe ending is rather horrifying considering 80s.

This was certainly one the better episodes; containing a beautiful and modest damsel in direst need of male protection from an extraordinary eccentric overbearing brutal villain who is faced up to by Holmes (Jeremy Brett) at his coolest and most urbane. The damsel is, by a mere hair, saved and the villain receives not a hair less than his just desserts. A thrilling, chilling full-blooded and most satisfying rendering of Conan Doyle's story.

But of all the Watsons there have been, from the elderly duffer and comic buffoon (Nigel Bruce in the 1940s' film versions) to younger and smarter ones, I can never reconcile myself to David Burke. A respected actor but as Watson he always gives - or perhaps was asked to give - too broad a performance with an absolute absence of nuance, rather as if in a boistrous stage farce. Holmes was of course a consummate judge of character and that, we must presume, included the person he wished to have as his close companion both at times of highest challenge and at times when he was at his lowest ebb. Holmes was an obsessive and a loner who struggled with his demons. So outstanding were his intellectual powers that he had no need of lesser brains - there were very few indeed he considered his equal - Moriarty, "The Woman" and perhaps in a different way, his brother Mycroft. Foreign royalty, the Prime Minister came to him on questions of ultimate importance. Holmes is under no misapprehension about his own abilities. That is the point of Holmes - at what he does he is the best. David Burke's quirky Watson sometimes tries to outguess Holmes. I do think that Holmes would have found such a Watson both extremely irritating and a liability. Edward Hardwicke in contrast is all those things that Holmes needed: completely predictable, utterly dedicated and loyal, never ever challenging but tactfully doing the decent thing when Holmes' manners and sensitivity to others feelings were lacking. It is in fact a portrayal of a successful marriage where one is brilliant, difficult, histrionic and uncompromising and the other is quiet supportive and understanding. It is the only kind of relationship Holmes would have needed or wanted.

I have made no secret of loving the very vast majority of the Granada Sherlock Holmes adaptations, and for me The Speckled Band is one of the better entries of the series. The story itself is one of the best of Sherlock Holmes, at least in my personal view, as it is so thrilling, and Dr Roylott is one of the most memorable "villains" of any Holmes story especially of how he's described, you know straightaway this is not a character you would want to mess with. Adaptation wise, The Speckled Band is excellent, the story is still thrilling and the beginning and ending both have a haunting and compelling atmosphere to them. The Speckled Band also succeeds on its own terms, the production values are as usual very evocative, the music is superb and the script is exceptional in its quality. The acting is fine, David Burke is only decent here as Watson, it's a good enough performance but to start with I felt he could have done a little bit more with the character. However, Jeremy Brett is brilliant giving one of his coolest and more urbane performances of the series particularly in his scene with Roylott and Jeremy Kemp is delightfully eccentric and overbearing. In conclusion, of a fine series The Speckled Band is a standout. 9/10 Bethany Cox

The late Jeremy Kemp, whom I first saw as a kid in the hilarious Top Secret! but who was later etched in my memory with his performance in The Blockhouse (1973) has always been one of those actors that I keep an eye out for: if I notice him in a movie, I stop whatever I'm doing, sit down and watch it.

In this episode, he makes his presence felt as the fearsome uncle of two sisters, one of whom has died under suspicious circumstances, and the other is in fear of her life. After she visits Sherlock to ask for help, he furiously rushes into that famous apartment in 221B, and makes quite an impressive threat. Which drives Holmes to pursue the case even more keenly, of course.

Not the best episode, but quite creepy in some scenes, and a nice addition to the overall series.