In the central role, Douglas Henshall brought a fantastic humanity to Doyle. There can be a tendency among even the best actors to make period characters rather stiff – maybe it's the tweed and the mahogany furniture – but Henshall gave us a living, breathing, vital man, haunted by his father's alcohol-fuelled madness and by his great creation.
The BBC Scotland co-production dealt with the period at the turn of the twentieth century when Doyle killed off Holmes, much to the shock and anger of the world. Was J K Rowling watching?
With no idea how much it cost, the film looked fantastic, with excellent location choices and interiors where you could almost smell the pipe smoke.
Here Doyle is still a young man in his thirties – his father had just died and his wife Louise (played by Saskia Reeves) has been diagnosed with consumption. Not the easiest of times for anyone, but the backlash to his decision to end the great detective's life prompted death threats and hate mail.
The subsequent books were neither a critical nor commercial success and his publisher suggested a biography as the next release. This brought into play the biographer Selden played by a wonderfully detached Tim McInnerny, a man who was obsessed by the Holmes's books, but even more by what had happened in Doyle's life to inspire their creation.
In this, the writer David Pirie found a perfect vehicle to explore Doyle's life. The biographer Selden is given carte blanche to talk to figures such as Doyle's mother Mary, played by Sinead Cusack, and his mentor Joseph Bell – a particularly fine performance by Brian Cox.
In attempting to reach his father at a seance, he met the next love of his life Jean Leckie (Emily Blunt), but while his wife Louise was still alive, the passion remained one which smoulders over afternoon tea. The elements of supernatural (who was Selden after all?) together with a look under the skin of one of the world's most famous authors made fascinating viewing.
If Douglas Henshall doesn't receive a gong or two for his performance as Doyle, an investigation should be launched.
After all, he even managed to make the Victorian gent rather sexy – and distract a single girl from her knitting.
Lorraine Wilson
TV week- The Herald August 1st 2005