Sherlock spin spurs iPlayer originals

UK pubcaster the BBC has claimed a ratings hit with a mini-episode of crime series Sherlock that debuted on iPlayer, as part of its plan to ramp up original programming on its VoD service.

Sherlock

Many Happy Returns premiered on iPlayer on December 24 and was available via the BBC’s on-demand red button service on Christmas Day.

It was written by Sherlock scribes Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat and followed a series of seemingly unconnected crimes stretching from Tibet to India to Germany.

The BBC claimed the seven-minute special had been viewed over 1.5 million times on the pubcaster’s iPlayer and red button services, while it also attracted 4.5 million hits on YouTube.

The move towards more iPlayer originals is part of director general Tony Hall’s plan to make the service the BBC’s “primary digital entertainment destination”, as he outlined in October, including hosting both original programming and debuting new seasons.

Victoria Jaye, head of TV content on BBC iPlayer, said the pubcaster would be offering more “made for BBC iPlayer content around our big brands, as well as originating entirely new formats exclusive to the service.

“The art of a powerful drama mini-sode is delivering a story that entertains in its own right, as well as builds excitement for a new series,” she added.

Mark Gatiss, writer, co-creator and exec producer of Sherlock, said the success of the mini episode “vividly demonstrates that we’re all enjoying TV in different ways.”

Sherlock, which stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes, Martin Freeman as John Watson and Rupert Graves as Inspector Lestrade, is produced by Hartswood Films.

The series returned to BBC1 on Wednesday for its third season premiere, clocking up a record breaking 9.2 million viewers.