Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Una Stubbs
Sherlock is a British crime television series based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes detective
stories. Created by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss.
Sherlock depicts "consulting detective" Sherlock Holmes (Benedict Cumberbatch) solving various mysteries
in modern-day London. Holmes is assisted by his flatmate and friend, Dr. John Watson (Martin Freeman),
who has returned from military service in Afghanistan with the Royal Army Medical Corps. Although
Metropolitan Police Service Detective Inspector Greg Lestrade (Rupert Graves) and others are suspicious
of Holmes at first, over time, his exceptional intellect and bold powers of observation persuade them of
his value. In part through Watson's blog documenting their adventures, Holmes becomes a reluctant
celebrity with the press reporting on his cases and eccentric personal life. Both ordinary people and
the British government ask for his help.
Although the series depicts a variety of crimes and perpetrators, Holmes's conflict with his archenemy
Jim Moriarty (Andrew Scott) is a recurring feature. Molly Hooper (Louise Brealey), a pathologist at St.
Bart's Hospital, occasionally assists Holmes in his cases. Other recurring roles include Una Stubbs as
Mrs. Hudson, Holmes and Watson's landlady, and series co-creator Mark Gatiss as Holmes's elder brother
Mycroft.