* {{Blooper}}: In Series 4's "[[Recap/SherlockS04E02TheLyingDetective The Lying Detective]]", [[spoiler:the blood that appears on the ground after John beats Sherlock disappears between shots.]]
* CreatorBacklash: After Series 4, Creator/MartinFreeman revealed he isn't keen to do another series because fan harassment due to failed expectations has taken out all the fun of making the show.
* DiagnosisOfGod: Creator/BenedictCumberbatch has said in [[http://www.digitalspy.com/british-tv/s129/sherlock/interviews/a355975/sherlock-benedict-cumberbatch-qa-i-want-this-character-to-evolve.html DigitalSpy]] that he plays Sherlock so that he can be read as either sociopathic or autistic or both.
* DescendedCreator: Mycroft is played by Creator/MarkGatiss, who is the co-creator of the series and a writer.
* DoingItForTheArt: Everyone involved with the show loved doing it during its peak seasons, which is why it continued well after Freeman and Cumberbatch had broken out in America. This especially goes for Cumberbatch, who spearheaded getting (at least) the third season greenlit despite being in the midst of several decidedly more lucrative Hollywood contracts, which normally would have relegated Sherlock as a waste of time.
* DuellingShows: With ''Series/{{Elementary}}'', its Creator/{{CBS}} cousin. ''Sherlock'' has a two-season head start, but Elementary's pushing out more episodes.
* DyeingForYourArt:
** Both Creator/BenedictCumberbatch and Creator/MarkGatiss dye their hair black for their roles as Sherlock and [[spoiler:Mycroft]]. They're both naturally ginger.
** In preparation for the first season, Cumberbatch lost some weight to reflect Sherlock's tendency to not eat while working. He's even thinner in the pilot. In the second season, he gained the weight back - after all, Sherlock now shares an apartment with a physician.
* EditedForSyndication: "[[Recap/SherlockS03E01TheEmptyHearse The Empty Hearse]]" for the American broadcast on PBS. In the series of intercut edits between Sherlock and John, Sherlock's "Fuuuu" (that feeds into John's "cough" to create "fuck off") is cut down by a few hundredths of a second so it's not as blatant. You would have to watch both versions to notice. Similarly John's swearing ("You - you cock!") is edited so that he just says "You!" twice. However, his calling Sherlock a "complete dickhead" is left intact in "[[Recap/SherlockS03E02TheSignOfThree The Sign of Three]]".
* EnforcedMethodActing: Lara Pulver caused quite a stir when she admitted that during the scene where Irene Adler was naked in front of Sherlock, she really ''wasn't'' wearing anything. One wonders how much of Martin and Benedict's reactions were genuine.
* FanCommunityNickname:
** Fans of [[Creator/BenedictCumberbatch Benedict]] have taken up the name [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwaJuIVQokY "Cumberbitches"]].
*** And since Benedict found that disturbing, some fans have switched to "Ben-addicts" or "Cumberbabes".
*** Or to "Cumbercookies" (so that a group of them would be called a "Cumberbatch").
*** Also "The Cumber Collective", which Benedict also mentioned by name on ''The Graham Norton Show''.
** "Sherlockians", which is almost as old as the original Arthur Conan Doyle stories for obvious reasons, and used to be synonymous with "Holmesians" but now [[FirstNameBasis tends to be associated with this show]].
** Similarly, "the Moffia".
** "Watson's Warriors" for the #believeinsherlock folks.
** "[[Series/DoctorWho The Fandom That Waited]]", referring to the agonizingly long hiatuses.
* FandomNod:
** John's comment on Sherlock "[[spoiler:ripping his clothes off in a darkened swimming pool]]". For the unassuming public, a fun nod to the HoYay.
** John directly addresses the homoeroticism in "[[Recap/SherlockS02E01AScandalInBelgravia A Scandal in Belgravia]]":
-->'''John''': Who the hell knows about Sherlock Holmes, but for the record — if [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall anyone out there]] ''still cares'' — I'm not actually gay.
** There is no way, none at all, that the jumper John is wearing during the Christmas interlude wasn't inspired by the fandom's appreciation of John Watson's cuddly jumpers. Sherlock mentions "the depth and complexity of John's jumpers" in " [[Recap/SherlockS03E02TheSignOfThree The Sign of Three]]" while rambling on distractedly [[spoiler: during his best man speech at John's wedding.]]
** When Sherlock and Irene first meet, one of her first comments is about his razor-sharp cheekbones, saying she could cut herself slapping that face. Those cheekbones have their own little fandom.
** John's "Asperger's?" remark in "[[Recap/SherlockS02E02TheHoundsOfBaskerville The Hounds of Baskerville]]" seems to be this.
** While cuffed together, Sherlock and John have to run while holding hands. John quips, "Now people will ''really'' talk."
** Pretty much everything in "[[Recap/SherlockS03E01TheEmptyHearse The Empty Hearse]]", especially Anderson's club devoted to theories about how Sherlock may have faked his death. We also get nods to just about everything the fandom has been known to ship.
* LyingCreator: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_c2v39J1aX0 Oh yes]]. Par for the course for Creator/StevenMoffat. He even admitted he threw things out just to feed fan speculation for Series 3.
* NewbieBoom: More curious people have been watching Sherlock after its near-instant popularity explosion, and many have become part of the fanbase as a result. The books also had one as well - the series actually [[http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2012-01-17/benedict-cumberbatchs-sherlock-boosts-conan-doyle-book-sales helped]] [[http://www.thebookseller.com/news/no-shit-sherlock-tv-adaptation-boosts-book-sales.html sales]] of the original books. After BBC Books rushed several tie-in editions into publication, many fans bought them (and enjoyed them immensely) and now a copy of one of the books is pretty much considered essential for any fan's collection.
* OutOfHolidayEpisode: ''Sherlock'' fit a 2016 New Year's Special called "[[Recap/SherlockSpecialTheAbominableBride The Abominable Bride]]" between Series 3 and 4.
* ProductionPosse: There's a good chance that if someone has worked on ''Series/{{Sherlock}}'', they've also done ''Series/DoctorWho''. This also goes for actors, too.
* QuietlyCancelled: After releasing Series 4 in 2017, no word has come of the series since, and the official stance is that it has gone on indefinite hiatus, making it all-but-effectively cancelled.
* RealLifeRelative: The producers have joined in on the good-natured ribbing about how much they keep it in the family when making the show.
** Creator/AmandaAbbington, Creator/MartinFreeman's then-partner, was cast as Mary Morstan (John's partner) for Series 3. It makes their chemistry much more natural and believable.
** Creator/WandaVentham and Timothy Carlton, Creator/BenedictCumberbatch's real parents, appear as Sherlock's parents.
** Creator/StevenMoffat's son, Louis Moffat, plays young Sherlock.
* RecycledScript: The first episode "[[Recap/SherlockS01E01AStudyInPink A Study in Pink,]]" is an update of the first Holmes tale "A Study in Scarlet" and the other stories take lots of plot threads and [[ShoutOut references]] from several more of the original stories.
* ReferencedBy: Has [[ReferencedBy/{{Sherlock}} its own page]].
* RereleasedForFree: The full series was [[https://www.crackle.com/watch/2472/2524771?gclid=CjwKCAjwxZqSBhAHEiwASr9n9MvuN3bRj4v0yh4cMo8TGWzSqJ8QCxaLuZw4SXDXoF8riIPZn1A9HRoC2BEQAvD_BwE released]] on Creator/{{Crackle}} on April 1, 2022.
* StarMakingRole:
** Creator/BenedictCumberbatch had been acting for many years prior, but ''Sherlock'' was what made him break out into international stardom, earning him BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations and an Emmy win, as well as a massive online fanbase. It also launched a successful movie career for him; 2013 alone had five movies with him.
** Though not quite to Benedict's level, Creator/AndrewScott's portrayal of Moriarty has received similar critical and fan acclaim and a BAFTA win.
* TechnologyMarchesOn: ''A Study in Pink'' has Sherlock sending simultaneous texts to the journalists and police officers in the press conference, with a snarky "Wrong!" to counter every statement Lestrade makes. This is framed as a mystery and technological prowess on Sherlock's part, which is rendered quite unimpressive when simultaneous text sending (via apps like Whatsapp or similar) became commonplace just a few years later.[[labelnote:Fun fact]] This episode aired in 2010. Whatsapp actually launched ''the previous year''.[[/labelnote]]
* ThrowItIn:
** Moriarty wasn't scripted as dancing as he breaks into the glass chamber with the royal jewels, but the music was actually playing on set and Andrew Scott decided to dance anyway.
** When Sherlock and John are drunk in "[[Recap/SherlockS03E02TheSignOfThree The Sign of Three]]", Sherlock says "I apologize for my... my... him," seemingly unable to come up with the word he wanted to use to describe John (who had fallen asleep when their client was talking). Benedict Cumberbatch had forgotten his line, but they thought it was hilarious and left it in.
* TroubledProduction: The first series had [[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1297023/Sherlocks-got-sexy-With-nicotine-papers-instead-pipe-taxis-replacing-hansom-cabs-new-TV-Holmes-21st-century-hero.html quite a few problems going for it,]] which started with the fact that it was being filmed during one of the coldest winters in the UK in nearly 30 years. This led to Benedict Cumberbatch catching a very dangerous case of pneumonia, and Martin Freeman severely hurting his wrist after slipping on an icy step coming out of his trailer. The second season only faired slightly better, no severe damage, but one day of filming was [[http://www.digitalspy.com/british-tv/s129/sherlock/news/a334260/sherlock-filming-halted-by-london-riots.html halted by the London riots.]]
* TouristBump: Speedy's, the restaurant located under Sherlock's flat, is a real place. It has since become a popular place for fans to visit. Some fans have even donated their fan-art, which the owners put on display.
* UncreditedRole: Mark Gatiss' role as Mycroft was this for the first series, as his casting was originally intended as a meta joke. When the character's role expanded in the second series he started getting credited.
* WhatCouldHaveBeen
** Creator/MattSmith auditioned to play John, but was turned down for being more of a Sherlock (they also kind of hinted that he might have ''been'' Sherlock, except they were already set on giving the part to Benedict). Which, hilariously, is what got him cast as [[Series/DoctorWho the Eleventh Doctor]].
** When comparing the characterization of Sherlock in the unaired pilot and the canon, Sherlock comes across as far more sympathetic in the pilot. Considering the actions Sherlock is [[KickTheDog capable and willing to do]] in the series, this could ironically enough be a way of making him [[StepfordSmiler less creepy]].
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