Sherlock
The Lying Detective
TV Flash files “The Lying Detective” as hour 11 of 12 in the TV Flash guide — Sherlock (2010–2017) on BBC/PBS, season 4, episode 2, aired 2017-01-08, 90 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S04E02: listed hour 11 of 12 in the Sherlock guide, hour 2 of 3 in season 4. It aired 2017-01-08 (90 min). The listed hour before it is “The Six Thatchers” (S04E01). Next is “The Final Problem” (S04E03).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
To save John, Sherlock takes on the most dangerous case of his career: bring serial killer and milliionaire-philanthropist Culverton Smith to justice. Meanwhile, the mystery of Sherringford Holmes deepens.
Viewer FAQ
Where does The Lying Detective sit in the Sherlock guide?
S04E02 is listed hour 11 of 12 — hour 2 of 3 in season 4, season 4 episode 2.
When did Sherlock S04E02 air?
The Lying Detective aired 2017-01-08 and is listed at 90 minutes.
Is it set in Victorian London?
No. Contemporary update: smartphones, blogs, text overlays. Doyle's characters and cases, Gatiss/Moffat's London now.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Holmes in texting-era London: Cumberbatch and Freeman as a global double act, mind palaces, on-screen texts, Moriarty as fandom sport. Gatiss and Moffat's movie-length BBC/PBS events made hiatuses feel like hostage situations. Modern Doyle for the GIF age — appointment mystery with waits that became part of the phenomenon.
The coat first. Benedict Cumberbatch's consulting detective in texting-era London, silhouette as a brand, Victorian arrogance cut against smartphone flair. Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat's BBC One series — *Masterpiece* in the U.S. — premiered July 25, 2010 as a contemporary Doyle update. Martin Freeman's John Watson blogs beside him. Episodes run like movies. Andrew Scott's Moriarty, Una Stubbs's Hudson, Rupert Graves's Lestrade, mind-palace overlays: detective television dressed as a global double act. **This…
Filed against
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- Martin Freeman as John Watson
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- Una Stubbs as Mrs. Hudson
Una Stubbs’s Mrs. Hudson kept Sherlock’s Baker Street human while Cumberbatch and Freeman turned texting-era London into a global double act. Mind palaces, on-screen texts, Moriarty as fandom sport, Gatiss and Moffat’s movie-length…
- Rupert Graves as Greg Lestrade
Rupert Graves's Greg Lestrade kept Sherlock's texting-era London honest — Cumberbatch and Freeman as a global double act, mind palaces, on-screen texts, Moriarty as fandom sport. Gatiss and Moffat's movie-length BBC/PBS events. TV Flash…
- Andrew Scott as Jim Moriarty
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- Amanda Abbington as Mary Watson
Amanda Abbington’s Mary Watson walked Sherlock’s texting-era London as the partner the GIF-age double act could not treat as furniture. Cumberbatch and Freeman, mind palaces, movie-length BBC events, hiatuses like hostage situations. TV…