BY TIM GREAVES

Numerous actors have occupied the role of Sherlock Holmes over the decades, some more suited to the shoes of author Arthur Conan Doyle's famous consulting detective than others. One of the finest portrayals is that by Ian Richardson. Yet, sadly, his is also one that is often overlooked, not leastways because he played the character just twice (in a pair of 1983 films made for television), but also because his light was to be quickly eclipsed a year later by the arrival on TV screens of Jeremy Brett, whose interpretation of Holmes is considered by many to be the definitive one.

Sy Weintraub – who produced several Tarzan movies throughout the 60s and was executive producer on the popular long-running Ron Ely TV series –teamed up with Otto Plaschkes (whose producer credits include Georgie Girl and The Holcroft Covenant) with the intention of making several Holmes adventures headlining Richardson. But when it became apparent that Granada TV was to launch its own series starring Brett, their plans were abandoned in a rights furore that resulted in a substantial out of court settlement in Weintraub’s favour. The two films that Weintraub and Plaschkes did bring to realisation were The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Sign of Four, two of only four full-length Holmes novels written by Conan Doyle. Both were shot on exquisite sets constructed at England's Shepperton Studios and include some splendid location work utilising the likes of Devonshire country house Knightshayes Court (doubling for Baskerville Hall) and London's River Thames (with some canny employ of theatrical smog to abet the disguise of non-period background architecture).

The Hound of the Baskervilles is probably the most famous of all Holmes's adventures and one of the most filmed. Yet it is also one that largely sidelines the great detective from the action for its middle third. The familiar plot finds our detective investigating death believed connected to a centuries old family curse and the legend of a demonic canine that allegedly haunts the eerie fog-wreathed moorlands surrounding the Baskerville estate.

Scripted by Charles Edward Pogue (whose later work included David Cronenberg’s remake of The Fly) and directed by Douglas Hickox (whose CV includes such 70s screen favourites as Brannigan and Theatre of Blood), like many before and since this isn't verbatim Conan Doyle. But that certainly doesn't detract from its worth as a cracking piece of entertainment. It's handsomely staged (the foreboding moors, awash with swirling fog, are at night as effectively nightmarish a Grimpen Mire as ever brought to the screen), with lush production values that completely belie its TV movie origins. It also boasts hands down the best depiction of the spectral, yellow-eyed titular beast to date.

Crucially, however, it benefits from an endearingly charismatic central performance from Ian Richardson; in many scenes the actor bears a startling resemblance to this writer's favourite Holmes, Basil Rathbone. Donald Churchill's interpretation of faithful ally Dr John Watson leans towards a bumbling nature that irks purists and doesn't rank as one of the more noteworthy, while Martin Shaw's Sir Henry Baskerville is hindered by horrible dubbing. Nevertheless, add in a marvellous assembly of supporting players – including Denholm Elliott (who'd previously appeared in 1978's woeful spoof version of the story), Glynis Barber, Ronald Lacey (as Inspector Lestrade), Eleanor Bron, Connie Booth, Brian Blessed and Edward Judd – and Hickox's film is markedly one of the most star-spangled versions of the supernatural-tinged tale.

The Sign of Four is comparatively a slightly more grounded and sedate affair, though at least Richardson's Holmes get more screen time. Again adapted from Conan Doyle’s novel by Charles Edward Pogue, more so than Hound it takes dramatic liberties with its source narrative (rearranging events and introducing new, slightly superfluous material), yet also in keeping with its predecessor it is hugely enjoyable. Directed by Desmond Davis (Clash of the Titans), this one finds Holmes following a trail of murders born of a broken pact between thieves relating to a treasure of precious gemstones and jewellery.

David Healy steps in as a fine Watson (though again the character is played as a little more maladroit than his literary self) and there are strong turns by Thorley Walters (who previously played Watson twice, opposite Christopher Lee’s and Douglas Wilmer’s Sherlocks respectively, in 1962’s The Valley of Fear and 1975 screwball comedy The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother) and Cherie Lunghi as the delectable Mary Morstan (who, in the novel – but not here – gets engaged to Watson). But overall this is a less starry affair than Hound. All the same, there are nice performances from Terence Rigby as Inspector Layton (a curious name switch, for he's clearly meant to be Lestrade), Joe Melia as the despicable peg-legged villain of the piece and John Pedrick as his savage sidekick.

Like Hound before it, The Sign of Four boasts a rich cinematic mien that bests many actual big screen Holmes adventures.

While one can certainly lament that Ian Richardson made only these two Holmes movies, that they're both exceptionally good is reward enough. And both are now available on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK from Second Sight, each with a bonus audio commentary from Holmes enthusiast David Stuart Davies. The 4K restoration for the Blu-rays is quite honestly breathtaking; one can scarcely believe that 33-year-old TV movies could look so good. There is, however, a caveat: the 1.78:1 aspect ratio presentation of the two films. Back in 1983 they were shot for then-standard 4:3 television format and the decision to force fit the image to modern widescreen TV sets has played merry havoc with the composition in some shots, at its most injurious when the tops of heads are rudely shorn off. It’s more noticeable in The Sign of Four than in The Hound of the Baskervilles but it’s a frequent distraction just the same. This disappointment aside though, these releases can't come more heartily recommended, both to Holmes fans (who will snap them up regardless of any perceived shortcomings remarked upon here) and those who simply enjoy a good solid evening’s entertainment.

A shot from The Sign of Four in its original 4:3 aspect ratio.

The same shot as presented on Second Sight’s 1.78:1 aspect DVD and Blu-ray release.

It should be noted that the Blu-ray release is coded Region B and the DVD is Region 2. The films are also being made available for download and on-demand in both standard and high definition.