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“He can sign me anywhere he wants”
There were schoolgirls, middle-aged men and curious passers-by. All gathered outside the Colston Hall on Tuesday as filming of a special one-off episode of Sherlock got underway in the venue’s historic cellars.
The dedicated fans were miserly rewarded when Benedict Cumberbatch – the titular star of the show – arrived and was obscured from view by a large green and black Dunlop umbrella.
Martin Freeman, who plays Dr John Watson, made less effort to hide but fans still only caught a glimpse of the actor, who found fame playing Tim in The Office and has most recently been on the big screen as Bilbo Baggins The Hobbit film trilogy, as he was rushed in through a side entrance.
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Cumberbatch’s fiancée Sophie Hunter was also on set and at least she waved hello to the crowds.
Some of those outside had traveled to Bristol from miles around and all were in good spirits despite no action since the lead actors had arrived around 9am. No action except for an unidentifiable female being taken inside by security at about 1.30pm, again hidden behind those big umbrellas.
She appeared to be wearing white bloomers, possibly confirming rumours that the one-off episode would be set within a Victorian timeline.
John Groves, 37, had come into the city centre on his day off to drop something at work, although he told Bristol24/7 he would have made the journey anyway.
“Having seen Benedict before at a premiere, I was just really interested to see what was going on,” John said. “I’m a big fan of Sherlock and obviously The Hobbit films too, and the dragon and the hobbit are here together which is pretty cool. How many times can you see a pair of actors this great in your home town?”
17-year-old Matt Cousins was hopeful for a photo and an autograph with Cumberbatch. Matt was wearing just a t-shirt and had already been waiting outside for over an hour when we spoke to him, but he told us he expected to be waiting a while longer: “I’ll wait as long as it takes.”
Bristol University student Maryanne Bradley, 21, claimed that she had just come to check out the general commotion. She said that she and her friend Kate were not even proper “Cumberbitches”, as the actor’s most fanatical followers call themselves.
A group of sixth form students from Colston’s Girls’ School could be the real deal. They had come down during a free period to see if they could spot Cumberbatch.
“He can sign me anywhere he wants,” one of them fawned, before they waited some more for a fruitless glimpse of their hero in Bristol.
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