A Message From the Deep Sea:
Series opener.
The beginning of the anthology series about detectives who were contemporaries of Sherlock Holmes.
For this opening episode the detective here is Dr John Thorndyke, a forensic scientist played by John Neville.
Intriguing case about the murder of a woman and how Dr Thorndyke proved who did it at the trial.
The Missing Witness Sensation:
Season 1, Episode 2.
The detective here is Max Carrados, blind detective played by Robert Stephens.
Stephens is very good as blind detective Max Carrados and the sensation of him as the missing witness.
Enthralling of how he got through this situation of being held captive.
The Duchess of Wiltshire's Diamonds:
Season 1, Episode 4.
The detective here is Simon Carne, gentlemen thief played by Roy Dotrice.
Coincidentally I am also seeing Dotrice in his regular role as Father in Beauty and the Beast (1987-90)
Dotrice is very good and clever as Simon Carne from the disguises he wears and the said diamonds that he steals much to the bafflement of the cop in charge of this case.
The Horse of the Invisible:
Season 1, Episode 5.
The detective here is Thomas Carnacki, occult detective.
I was already familiar with Carnacki prior to watching this The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes episode with an audio adaptation of a Carnacki story by Big Finish and played by Dan Starkey.
For The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes episode Carnacki is played by Donald Pleasance.
Very good, very intriguing and very spooky about the said horse all leading to the denouement of this case.
The Affair of the Tortoise:
Season 1, Episode 10.
The detective here is Martin Hewitt and played by Peter Barkworth.
Small appearance by John Levene as a constable.
This episode came on November 22 1971 and at the same time Levene was seen as Sergeant Benton in Doctor Who.
Barkworth makes for a capable detective in Hewitt.
Good revelation about the dead body and commendable that Hewitt chose to expose the author of that note.
The Case of Laker, Absconded:
Season 1 finale.
Broadcast on December 9 1971, which is exactly eight years before I was born.
Peter Barkworth and Ronald Hines returns as Martin Hewitt and Jonathan Pryde respectively although it is the former’s case as the latter makes a fleeting appearance throughout this episode.
A very fascinating case that Hewitt investigates about a bank clerk who has stolen money.
A good little flashback of how this robbery took place.
Five Hundred Carats:
Season 2, Episode 2.
The detective here is Inspector Lipinzki, police detective played by Barry Keegan.
This episode deals with the theft of a diamond (hence the episode title) in a small mining town.
A very fascinating episode although Inspector Lipinzki is less noticeable as the culprits seems to take the lion’s share of the episode.
The Sensible Action of Lieutenant Holst:
Season 2, Episode 6.
The detective here is the said Lieutenant Holst, Danish police detective and played here by John Thaw.
Of course this is not the only time that Thaw has played a cop as concurrent to the viewing of this episode I have also been seeing him as Regan in The Sweeney which came a few years after this episode of The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes.
Other members of the cast include Catherine Schell as a Russian countess and years later she played another countess in Doctor Who: City of Death.
She also turned up in an episode of the aforementioned The Sweeney starring Thaw in the antepenultimate episode of the first season, Big Spender.
Fascinating case in which Lieutenant Holst have deal with Russian revolutionary situation here in Denmark and quite admirable that Lieutenant Holst is determine to follow procedure to the letter in handling this situation.
Certainly a contrast to Regan.
Intriguing what Holst says to the Russian countess at the end.
In a sad coincidence just as I was finishing this episode I had learnt that fellow Rival Roy Dotrice who played Simon Carne in The Duchess of Wiltshire's Diamonds had passed on October 16 2017.
quote:A question that occurred to me today after picking up a copy of "The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes"
Pitting the Great Detective against the sanity wrecking, paradoxical and illogical existences that are found in the Lovecraft mythos is popular crossover fodder.
What OTHER detectives would be equally interesting in that position? I imagine the existing "Occult Detectives" such as Carnacki the Ghost Finder or Flaxman Lowe would be obvious choices. Carnacki all but acknowledges that there are... Things out there that his only hope to deal with is invoking other entities, using secret sigils and obscure occult manuscripts. Already he sounds like he's skirting the edges of the Old Ones' territory.
I feel like C. Auguste Dupin would be a viable candidate as the feel of his stories seems very much compatible with Lovecraft...
Or those who are regarded entirely as "Scientific" or "Logical"
FSX Van Dusen, or Ellery Queen?
What would the Continental Op or Phillip Marlowe do against these cults and creatures?
The Mystery of the Amber Beads:
Penultimate episode.
Starring Sara Kestelman as Hagar Stanley, a gypsy detective.
A gypsy woman in Hagar becomes an unlikely detective when a rich widow got murdered
The said Amber Beads is from a necklace that was owned by the widow which then ended up in a pawn shop run by Hagar.
This soon leads her to investigate this case.
Intriguing this said mystery and the motive for this murder.
The Missing Q.C.s:
Series finale.
Starring Robin Ellis as Charles Dallas, defence barrister.
During a trial that Dallas works on as defence barrister, a couple of QCs went missing.
It tracks where these QCs are and horrific where he finds them in.
'Quite a horrendous situation this is but wraps up well at the end.