Sherlock Holmes: The Final Problem & The Empty House

Sherlock Holmes (Big Finish) #2.1

by Nicholas Briggs (Author/Narrator), Richard Earl (Narrator), Beth Chalmers (Narrator)

The Final Problem
By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Adapted by Nicholas Briggs

Sherlock Holmes visits his good friend Dr John Watson… but Holmes is not his usual, composed, supremely confident self. He is a hunted man. Having unearthed the criminal mastermind behind the greatest crimes in the land, Holmes has found himself a fugitive. But, the Great Detective already has a plan in motion. It will not be long before his arch foe, Professor Moriarty, is in custody. If only Holmes and Watson can manage to stay alive in the meantime.

The Empty House
By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Adapted by Nicholas Briggs

Still lamenting the death of his valued friend and colleague Sherlock Holmes, Dr Watson finds himself intrigued by a murder case. But as he begins his investigations, a strange old man enters his consulting room. Could it be that Sherlock Holmes is back from the dead, and even now working to solve a murder? The game is once again afoot!
'Richard Earl is masterful as Watson, carrying the burden of the story. He sounds a youngish and bright version of Holmes’s friend and has a wonderful way of subtly bringing the action to life. Nick Briggs is a fine Holmes, enigmatic and dramatic by turns... If you like your dramatised Holmes unadulterated, strong on atmosphere and rich in detail, this is the CD for you.' The Sherlock Holmes Journal
'Nicholas Briggs adaptation is note perfect, as is his portrayal of Holmes, and when Holmes finally faces Moriarty, played by Alan Cox (who, fact-fans, also played Watson in ‘Young Sherlock Holmes’), the tension is incredible, reaching out to grip you by your throat, almost dragging you into the room as each man tries to gain a psychological edge over the other as they prepare for their inevitable confrontation... Briggs is again superb as Conan Doyle’s most famous creation, and Richard Earl is a perfect foil, his portrayal of Watson ensuring that the most famous of crime solving duo’s remain just that, a duo, the emphasis never shifting and never favouring either character, allowing both characterisation and story to shine. Superb. Simply superb…' Tim, Mass Movement

Genres: Audiobook, Mystery, Crime, Historical

Audio CD

First published October 31, 2011

About the author

Nicholas Briggs is a British actor and writer, predominantly associated with the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who and its various spin-offs. Some of Briggs' earliest Doctor Who-related work was as host of The Myth Makers, a series of made-for-video documentaries produced in the 1980s and 1990s by Reeltime Pictures in which Briggs interviews many of the actors and writers involved in the series. When Reeltime expanded into producing original dramas, Briggs wrote some stories and acted in others, beginning with War Time, the first unofficial Doctor Who spin-off, and Myth Runner, a parody of Blade Runner showcasing bloopers from the Myth Makers series built around a loose storyline featuring Briggs as a down on his luck private detective in the near future.

He wrote and appeared in several made-for-video dramas by BBV, including the third of the Stranger stories, In Memory Alone opposite former Doctor Who stars Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant. He also wrote and appeared in a non-Stranger BBV production called The Airzone Solution (1993) and directed a documentary film, Stranger than Fiction (1994).

Briggs has directed many of the Big Finish Productions audio plays, and has provided Dalek, Cybermen, and other alien voices in several of those as well. He has also written and directed the Dalek Empire and Cyberman audio plays for Big Finish. In 2006, Briggs took over from Gary Russell as executive producer of the Big Finish Doctor Who audio range.

Briggs co-wrote a Doctor Who book called The Dalek Survival Guide.

Since Doctor Who returned to television in 2005, Briggs has provided the voices for several monsters, most notably the Daleks and the Cybermen. Briggs also voiced the Nestene Consciousness in the 2005 episode "Rose", and recorded a voice for the Jagrafess in the 2005 episode "The Long Game"; however, this was not used in the final episode because it was too similar to the voice of the Nestene Consciousness. He also provided the voices for the Judoon in both the 2007 and 2008 series. On 9 July 2009, Briggs made his first appearance in the Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood in the serial Children of Earth, playing Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary Rick Yates.

Reviews

[Jamieson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Besides being the home of Doctor Who audi dramas, Big Finish has also produced audio dramas of several other British franchises (Blake's 7, Gerry Anderson, The Avengers, Adam Adamant, Survivors, etc). One of these franchises is Sherlock Holmes with Nicholas Briggs as Holmes and Richard Earl as Watson.

This release contains the stories The Final Problem and The Empty House. I only listened to The Final Problem. I enjoyed it, it was a good story, but I find that Holmes isn't a huge favorite of mine. Briggs (the voice of the Daleks, Cybermen and many other Doctor Who monsters) is fine as Holmes. But compared to the portrayal from Cumberbatch and RDJ on TV and film recently, Briggs is a bit on the boring side. As such (and because of certain idiosyncrasies with my MP3 player), I didn't bother continuing on with The Empty House once I'd finished the first story.

[Yosef Shapiro · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very faithful adaptation of these classic Sherlock Holmes Stories. To me, the definitive version is still the Granada television series starring Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes. But,this was very well done. The only thing that I did not like was the voice of Moriarty.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 5 out of 5]

These were very faithful to the stories that are essentially the “death” and then “resurrection” of Sherlock Holmes. Listening to this, I remembered reading the passages seven years ago, and they are recited very well here.

[Debra Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

The final problem and holmes returns.

[Idamus · Rating 2 out of 5]

I do like these stories, I just can’t tell who is who unless we are clearly told who is speaking.

[Kelly Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite Sherlock Holmes story. I would have liked for it to be longer, but you could still feel the adventure, sadness, and grief in it.

[Annathea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my favorite stories (I dislike The empty house), but a stellar production, as always.

[Heather]

One of the best Sherlock recordings i've heard! Really wonderful!