{"id":42442,"date":"2023-12-24T23:30:12","date_gmt":"2023-12-24T22:30:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1945115"},"modified":"2023-12-25T01:05:41","modified_gmt":"2023-12-25T00:05:41","slug":"mark-gatiss-on-surprise-cameo-in-lot-no-249-i-couldnt-resist","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/mark-gatiss-on-surprise-cameo-in-lot-no-249-i-couldnt-resist\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Gatiss on surprise cameo in Lot No. 249: \u201cI couldn\u2019t resist\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gatiss inserted a character who does not appear in the original story by Arthur Conan Doyle. <\/p>

By Morgan Jeffery\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Sunday, 24 December 2023 at 22:30 PM<\/p>

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*Warning: This article contains spoilers for A Ghost Story for Christmas: Lot No. 249*<\/strong><\/p>\n

Having previously transported Sherlock Holmes into the modern day, Mark Gatiss tackled another of Arthur Conan Doyle\u2019s outings with his latest Ghost Story for Christmas, the spine-chilling Lot No. 249<\/a>.<\/p>\n

First published in 1892, Lot No. 249 was a Gothic horror story with no connection to Sherlock\u2019s adventures \u2013 so those familiar with the original story will have been taken by surprise when a \u2018consultant\u2019 who smokes a pipe and speaks of plans to move to London\u2019s Baker Street popped up in the TV version.<\/p>\n

Lot No. 249 sees young academic Abercrombie Smith (Kit Harington) encounter the strange and exotic Edward Bellingham (Freddie Fox), whose arcane research into Ancient Egypt could be inspiring something terrible.<\/p>\n

In the original tale, Smith discusses the affair with his friend, the Reverend Plumtree Peterson \u2013 but in\u00a0<\/span>Gatiss\u2019s adaptation, the Reverend is replaced by a figure very heavily implied to be Doyle\u2019s most famous creation, Sherlock Holmes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t resist,\u201d Gatiss told RadioTimes.com<\/a> of the surprise twist.<\/span><\/p>

\u201cIn the story, his friend is called the Reverend Plumtree Peterson \u2013 with a name like that, [the character] promises a great deal and then doesn\u2019t really do much\u2026 and I just thought, \u2018Oh, I know!\u2019.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In an earlier draft, the character was definitively stated to be Sherlock Holmes, though Gatiss later removed any direct confirmations to leave the character\u2019s identity more ambiguous.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the original script, Smith says \u2018It won\u2019t do, Holmes, it really won\u2019t.\u2019 \u2013 and I thought, no, I\u2019m not going to say it\u2019s definitely him.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The character, credited only as \u201cThe friend\u201d, is played by actor John Heffernan, who Gatiss previously worked with on Dracula<\/a> \u2013 he was cast in Lot No. 249 in part due to his resemble to the iconic sketches of Sherlock Holmes made by artist Sidney Paget.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe looks like the Paget, doesn\u2019t he?\u201d Gatiss said. \u201cHe just leapt into my head.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Holmes\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
An example of Sidney Paget\u2019s iconic illustrations of Sherlock Holmes.<\/span><\/figcaption> Historical Picture Archive\/Corbis via Getty Images<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

Lot No. 249 also features another Holmes reference too, though you likely missed it. In one scene, Bellingham is holding a book bearing the title \u2018The Dynamics of an Asteroid\u2019, a tome written by Professor Moriarty in Conan Doyle\u2019s stories.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, the book is never clearly glimpsed on-screen \u2013 a result of a tight shooting schedule that also saw a Doctor Who Easter egg<\/a> obscured in Lot No. 249.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe book that Freddie\u2019s holding is \u2018The Dynamics of an Asteroid\u2019, but you can\u2019t really see it, because there\u2019s no cutaway,\u201d Gatiss explained.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more:<\/strong><\/p>\n