The last series with Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes consists of 6 stories, all of the standard 1-hour length. This series has the unusual feature that Mycroft (Charles Gray) appears prominently in two episodes. In the first - The Golden Pince-Nez - he was a stand-in for Watson. In the second - The Mazarin Stone - he was the stand-in for Holmes! Claudine Auger - Bond girl from Thunderball (1965) - appears as a cougar out to marry a wealthy young lord in The Three Gables. There are a number of actors who would be noteworthy in later years but not yet. Ciaran Hinds plays a cuckold in The Cardboard Box, Hugh Bonneville (Downton Abbey's Lord Grantham) plays a man addicted to heroin in The Dying Detective, and Frank Finlay plays an invalid professor in The Golden Pince-Nez.
Much as I like Charles Gray, his replacing Sherlock was off-putting. His pursuit of the villain was like something out of a horror film as the villain would shoot at the approaching Mycroft only to then discover he was not there. The episode was begun with a brief scene of Sherlock having to leave for Scotland and ended with him congratulating his brother on solving the case. Worse yet, the story was a mashup of two Sherlock Holmes mysteries that were poorly stitched together.
Overall, Jeremy Brett made an outstanding Sherlock Holmes. Edward Hardwicke was an excellent Doctor Watson, providing some humanity that Holmes often lacks. Rosalie Williams had a long run as Mrs. Hudson and offered more character to the role than one would expect. The Granada series is a definite must-see for the Sherlock Holmes enthusiast.
Recommended.
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