Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is one of the most famous writers of all time. Book lovers around the world couldn’t get enough of hi Sherlock Holmes stories but, surprisingly, the author felt very different towards the famous detective.
In fact, he was so haunted by the success of Holmes, he decided to kill him off – much to the total disbelief of an army of fans.
The one-off drama delves into Arthur’s difficult relationship with his pipe-smoking sleuth.
It reveals he may have been going through a nervous breakdown when he wrote the story in which Holmes plunges to his death from an Alpine cliff.
‘The film begins when a writer could Selden come into Arthur’s life to write a biography,’ explains Douglas Henshall who plays Arthur. “He uncovers family secrets involving Arthur’s alcoholic father, who has just died in an asylum.
“Around the same times, Arthur’s wife Louise was suffering from a terminal illness. He was racked with guilt because he was already involved with another woman.
“It becomes clear his emotional turmoil may have a part in his decision to kill Holmes off.”
Douglas thinks the drama, which also includes Saskia Reeves, Sinead Cusack, Tim McInnerny and Brian Cox, portrays Arthur in a new light.
“People think of him as an old man with a walrus moustache because those are the only photos we’ve ever seen of him,” he adds. “But I‘m playing him when he was in his 30’s. As a younger man, he was a robust and sporty guy.
“I do wear the ‘tache. But luckily it’s a smaller one – I hate having itchy things glued to my top lip.”
After starring in a string of small British movies, including This Year’s Love and Orphans, the Glasgow born actor, 39, who has also had roles TV dramas Anna Karenina and Frances Tuesday has his sights set on Hollywood.
“I don’t know if I could go there and wait around waiting for someone to give me a job though”, says Douglas, who lives in London.
“I’ve always had this fantasy I’d wait until I was invited. I guess the letter has got lost in the post!”
Tim Randall