There is a lot of buzz and excitement concerning the "Sherlock" Christmas special entitled "The Abominable Bride," which will be released on January 1, 2016, and showrunner Steven Moffatt is adding to the excitement by sharing some details about the episode.
As many people already know, it is set in Victorian times, and Moffatt explained to Radio Times that it is their chance to do the "Sherlock Holmes" story in the right year.
"It's a new story," Moffatt said of the episode, "but if you know the original stories, you'll see that it's fashioned out of quite a few others. As ever with us we've chosen several and there are loads of references (to the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle). One of them you have to be able to speak Chinese to get."
Moffatt added that they are hoping to have more than just "a bit of fun" on the 90-minute episode.
"Our ambition was that, explicitly, the first 15/20 minutes is the fun of seeing our version of Sherlock Holmes transposed back to its original setting. Then we've got to get on with the story," he said. "It's a proper scary mystery. I think it's quite a good mystery with quite a good solution, but there's also the ongoing tension between the version of the characters we developed to accommodate the modern setting now sitting in Victorian times."
When asked if the same cast will be included in the special episode, Moffatt teased by saying, "You'll have to wait and see who's in it. Not everyone makes the transition of the years."
Moffatt is now working on more "Sherlock" episodes, much to the delight of fans. Just like previous seasons, there will only be three episodes.
"I'm writing 'Sherlock' now," he shared. "I try not to know what my deadlines are. Three again and it'll just be me and Mark (Gatiss) writing them this time. One each and one together."
Meanwhile, Moffatt lauded about the 1916 silent movie of Sherlock that starred William Gillette. The showrunner said that the actor was so good with his role that he "turned Sherlock into a sex symbol."
"And he's never ever not been a sex symbol since," he further said. "He was the first to say, 'He can be sexy and suave.' He had the gravitas to carry that off. The sudden decision that Sherlock is a matinee idol and therefore handsome. He was not seen that way before then."
