The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (TV Series) The Red Headed League (1985) User Reviews

Reinforces why I love this series so much

[TheLittleSongbird · 9/10 · 7 June 2011]

I am a big fan of the Granada Sherlock Holmes series as I have said many, many times. This may not be exactly faithful to the original story, while Moriaty was a very welcome presence compared to the original story he feels rather thrown in and there are some very memorable and humorous bits of dialogue that didn't quite make it on screen.

However, on its own terms The Red Headed League is very, very good and reinforces what I love so much about the series. As always, a lot of care is taken into how well constructed the adaptation is visually. The photography is very skillful, the costumes beautifully tailored and the scenery and sets wonderfully meticulous and atmospheric. I was too taken with how Sarasate was portrayed and the lengths that were made to make the actor look like the violin virtuoso.

The music is once again wonderful, with themes that are both beautiful and haunting. The story is well paced and interesting, the dialogue is sometimes humorous but very often thought-provoking and the direction is solid. The acting is excellent as is consistently the case with this series. Jeremy Brett with his towering presence and gritty baritone of a voice gives a very commanding title role performance, and David Burke is a thoughtful and composed Watson. Eric Porter also does very well with his appearance as Moriaty, his performance is somewhat brief but that was a decision for the better, too much Moriaty and I personally don't think this would have been as effective.

In conclusion, maybe not as strong as The Norwood Builder, The Crooked Man and The Speckled Band, but a strong episode. 9/10 Bethany Cox

Mr. Moriarty? Mr. Holmes.

[rmax304823 · 7/10 · 24 March 2010]

This is one of the stories I most enjoy, perhaps because it was the first of Conan-Doyle's stories I stumbled across in my teens. But, really, it's more than just a matter of sentiment. The movie is well constructed and finely performed, even if it departs a bit from the printed tale. And it has more humorous moments than most.

Mr. Jabez Wilson is a red-headed, down-on-his-luck pawnbroker who comes to Holmes and Watson looking for an explanation of some strange events. He recently acquired an assistant willing to work for half wages. The assistant spends a good deal of time developing his photographs in the cellar.

He brings to Wilson's attention an opening in something called The Red-Headed League, which might provide him with some badly needed income. Wilson, puzzled though he is, applies for the job and gets it. The work involves sitting in an empty office for four hours a day, copying the Encyclopedia Brittanica. As Wilson explains it to Holmes and Watson, the responsibilities weren't entire onerous. He actually learned a lot about things beginning with the letter "A" in the encyclopedia. He begins a learned discourse on the properties of artichokes before Holmes cuts him off.

Then one day Wilson shows up for work and a sign is hanging on the office door: "The Red-Headed League is Dissolved." Holmes and Watson both burst out laughing but soon get down to serious business.

The young assistant and a fellow thief are tunneling underground to reach the vault of the bank behind Wilson's pawn shop. The League was a ruse to get Wilson out of the shop for a few hours a day as the tunnel progressed.

Professor Moriarty is behind it all -- at least in the film. He's not mentioned in print. And for some reason, other memorable lines are omitted from the film: "I wasn't looking at his face. I was looking at the knees of his trousers." And, "Why, dear me, it sounds quite hollow." And, "Run, Archie, and I'll swing for it!" I won't even bother to describe the conversational environment of these words. I recommend reading the story if you haven't already. It's pretty short.

There is a reference in the original to a concert by Sarasate. Pablo Sarasate was a real historical figure, a violin virtuoso of the period. The film not only mentions the concert but shows us a few minutes of Sarasate himself winging his way through a particularly difficult piece. The actor, Bruce Dukov, actually LOOKS like Sarasate -- same features, same hair style. That's an example of how much attention was paid in this series to period detail.

Moriarty seems thrust into the narrative, though. And he's a little too plump and ugly to fit Conan-Doyle's description. He ought to be skinny and bald and weave his head slightly from side to side in a reptilian fashion.

No matter, though. A splendid job.

Handsomely Done

[ericksonsam60 · 8/10 · 16 February 2012]

While not one of my favorites this one is certainly one of Granada's top Holmes adaptations. The story is slick, interesting, and elegantly unfolds itself. It starts out as a laughable case but it becomes serious with a bigger picture beginning to emerge and something sinister lurking beneath. It manages to be both a detective mystery and a crime story with nice touches of build up and humor. Professor Moriarty (played by Eric Porter, giving genuine meaning to word "diabolical ") makes his first appearance even though it is brief (although it was not in the original story). However, nothing is wrong with that as the series wisely used Moriarty sparingly and he would have a much larger role in the story right after this one "The Final Problem".

One of the best.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 10/10 · 2 January 2020]

It's foolish to say this episode comes during a purple patch for the show, hard to imagine, but it does, almost every single episode in this series is great, this is perhaps my favourite. It is whimsical and amusing on the surface, but underneath it's cunning, sinister and fiendishly clever. The presence of Professor Moriarty always adds that extra something, and although he's not visible for very long, his presence is strong, I love Moriarty's final scene, where you see him utterly frustrated by Holmes. Holmes at his cleverest.

Wonderful characters all of them, I particularly loved Richard Wilson as Ross, donned in a red wig he was terrific. Tim McInnerny also brilliant, that great scene where he reveals his identity. Terrific music and production values as always.

Pay the proper wage! There's a lesson in that. 10/10

Creative Criminals

[Hitchcoc · 10/10 · 6 February 2014]

This is perhaps the best known Holmes story next to "The Hound of the Baskervilles." It involves a man, Jabez Wilson, who has been given a strange job, copying pages from the Encyclopedia Britannica in longhand. He sits at a desk in a stark room and receives payment beyond that fitting the job. Not only that, he has gotten the job because he passed muster, competing against other men with red hair. He actually went to interviews where the authenticity of the red-headed gentlemen was checked. Now, something has changed and he decides to bring his case to Holmes and Watson. One has to accept that the potential criminal enterprise has become so convoluted as to draw attention. Still, it is a delightful story which has stood the test of time. Like "The Blue Carbuncle," we are never to take anything as a life or death situation. Conan Doyle had a sense of humor. Jeremy Brett coolly investigates this with his deep tones filling the room at 221B. Well acted and portrayed with relish.

Meet Professor Moriarty

[suicidea · 9/10 · 22 January 2021]

A man named Jabez Wilson consults Holmes with a curious case: Although he already owns an antique shop, for the last few weeks he had been employed by a certain Red Headed League to copy out the Encyclopedia Britannica. He accepted because the pay was very good and the job not that hard, but the most curious point was that he was chosen for the job because of the color of his hair. When the Red Headed League is suddenly dissolved, he contacts Holmes to find out what it was all about.

This episode has more humor than usual, but the standout moment is, of course, the introduction of Eric Porter in the role of Professor Moriarty. Roger Hammond provides the comic relief as the confused Jabez Wilson, and Tim McInnerny is very good as the noble criminal John Clay. It's a memorable episode for the imaginative crime, a must-watch for any fan of the series.

Enter Sherlock Holmes's nemesis

[grantss · 10/10 · 28 November 2022]

Sherlock Holmes is contacted by Jabez Wilson with a strange, harmless-seeming, chain of events. Mr Wilson is red-headed and was hired by the Red Headed League to perform a minor task each day for a very decent salary. To his surprise, however, the work is suddenly stopped and his employer is nowhere to be found. Though paid handsomely he feels he has been tricked in some way. Holmes initially finds the series of events amusing but after some contemplation sees a much more sinister plot in operation.

Another very intriguing Sherlock Holmes mystery. Like many of the Holmes stories the crime is not immediately apparent, as it hasn't been committed yet. Here Holmes needs to get ahead of the criminals to prevent a crime being committed.

The other interesting thing about this episode is that we are introduced to Holmes's nemesis, Professor Moriarty.

Looking forward to next episode

[vitoscotti · 10/10 · 10 October 2020]

You can sense Holmes figured out early a mastermind was involved. I like very little is explained until approaching the end. I really enjoy a detective mystery how this story was laid out., then revealed. Some reviewers are commenting the episodes aren't true to the original story. Well, to me, Jeremy Brett is the perfect Sherlock Holmes. No one comes close.

The Red Headed League

[Prismark10 · 5/10 · 3 March 2019]

Holmes and Watson are intrigued by the peculiar comical case of Jabez Wilson. A down on his luck pawn broker, who at his assistant's behest applies to join The Red Headed League.

They will pay a princely 4 pounds per week to the right candidate for some nominal work. Copying entries from an an encyclopedia.

After a few weeks The Red Headed League suddenly disbanded. Wilson thinks he has been made a fool of. Holmes thinks something more serious is at play here and Wilson's assistant, who started employment for him at half wages, is the key.

I have read the short story and I watched this when it was originally transmitted. In all subsequent viewings I cannot overlook that this episode has been padded to the hilt.

Holmes at a concert, Holmes and some people waiting in the dark for someone to break into the vault. Even adding Professor Moriarty into the story so it can segue into the next story.

I did enjoy Eric Porter's sinister appearance. Roger Hammond is suitably comical as the bemused Jabez Wilson but this was struggling to fit its 55 minutes running length.

I do chuckle at the notion that some time in 1985. Every red headed man in England was employed as an extra by Granada Studios.