Sherlock Series 4

Well, Sherlock fans, it’s a good thing we’ve had a lot of practice at waiting out lengthy hiatuses between seasons of our favorite show, because it looks like we’re in for another one. (Or a continuing one, depending on how you look at it, I guess?)

Everyone’s favorite detective drama is already set to return for a Victorian-themed special episode later this year, but it looks like we won’t see a full Season 4 for some time yet.

Just because we’ve got a ways to go before we see any new Sherlock on our screens doesn’t meant that there isn’t a pretty near constant stream of new things to talk about, as far as the show itself goes. This is what happens when you sign on for a Steven Moffat/Mark Gatiss production – as Doctor Who fans well know – because the show runners (and cast members, come to that) came seem to stop talking about the upcoming episodes at every available opportunity.

(It also helps that both Moffat and Gatiss are both great at saying a lot without actually giving you any real information at all, which helps keep the first of fan excitement well stoked.)

At any rate, thanks to a pair of recent interviews with Gatiss in the Radio Times, we now have some new official tidbits to pick over and endlessly speculate about, as concerns both the upcoming one-off special, which we’ll see at some point in 2015, and in Series 4 proper.

Let’s break it down, shall we?

What’s next for Sherlock? Fans the world over have been asking this question virtually since the credits rolled on Series 3 finale His Last Vow. Thankfully, the crime drama is set to return for a one-off special next year and a three-episode fourth season at some as yet to be determined time in 2016, but since production on the special isn’t getting under way until January of 2015, we know very little so far about what to expect when the story of the Baker Street boys resumes.

The series’ cast does seem to know a bit more than we do, but they’re keeping pretty mum at present, although star Benedict Cumberbatch did share a few observations during one of his (many) interviews in the midst of film festival press for his upcoming turn as British codebreaker Alan Turing in The Imitation Game.

A happy announcement: everyone’s favorite crime drama Sherlock absolutely slayed it at the 2014 Primetime Emmy Awards, taking home a total of seven statues for Series 3 installment His Last Vow. Yeah, that means Sherlock won more awards than critical darling Breaking Bad. For real.

Sadly neither Benedict Cumberbatch nor Martin Freeman – who collected trophies for Best Lead and Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie for their performances as Sherlock and John – were present at the ceremony, being busy with filming commitments and a stage play, respectively. Creator Steven Moffat was, however, and after he celebrated collecting a trophy for Outstanding Writing in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special, he dropped a few hints about what we can expect to see in the highly anticipated fourth season.

Fans everywhere can rejoice: The BBC has officially confirmed that Sherlock will return for a one-off special and a three-episode Series 4!

[Yes it’s okay if you start screaming now.]

Even though the entire cast and creative team has been discussing this for ages as a done deal, it’s nice to get the official word that the fourth season is happening (plus the bonus of an extra episode!) Stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman will return as Sherlock and John and presumably solve the mystery of why Moriarty’s face was plastered everywhere in London at the end of last season (and hopefully deal with the fallout from the Mary situation that left a lot of fans scratching their heads).

Well, it’s probably a good thing that Sherlock fans are some of the best at patiently playing the waiting game – because there’s another indication that we might be waiting for quite a while to see stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman together on our screens again.

In a new interview with the The Sunday Telegraph, Freeman said that a Christmas special for everyone’s favorite (consulting) detective drama “looks pretty likely,” but don’t get your hopes up just yet folks, because such a special would be unlikely to air before Christmas 2015.

It’s a good thing that Sherlock fans have already proven themselves singularly adept at waiting (apologies to Doctor Who’s Amy Pond, who really has nothing on these folks), because it’s sounding more and more like we’re settling in for another long test of our patience as we wait for Series 4. Or whatever might come next.

Star Martin Freeman, who’s been doing the media rounds of late in support of his new FX series Fargo, has been, predictably, getting asked quite a bit about when we might expect to see the next season of everyone’s favorite (consulting) detective drama. His answers have shed some light on the current situation, offering equally intriguing and depressing tidbits about what the next season of the show might look like. (And when we might see it.)

Though the BBC Press Office has yet to officially confirm a fourth season of mega-hit mystery series Sherlock despite the fact that Series 3 officially has officially wrapped in the UK, this hasn’t stopped the show’s creators from talking about it as though things are a done deal.

Which, I think we’re all probably fine with, given the circumstances.

And, if you need to feel even more reassurance: co-creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss have confirmed that they’ve already plotted out not just what will happen in Series 4, but Series 5 as well!

Congrats to everyone for surviving the horrifying ten month wait with little-to-no Sherlock news to speak of whatsoever, because apparently we have reached the promised land and the floodgates of Series 3 information have opened. Following the announcement of the official start of production on Series 3 and first episode read-through yesterday, there’s actually even better news to share. (Yes, really.)

[Normally I feel a bit bad about doing two posts on the blog in a row about the same topic, but since this news really is pretty exceptionally awesome, I hope everyone will forgive me.]