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As Russ points out, I'm very much a fan of the Merrison/Williams BBC Complete Canon. Merrison brings a fine human quality to the role of Holmes. He seems rounded and runs through a full range of suitable emotions. I find him at his most appealing when he gives vent to Holmes' irritability at the failures of lesser mortals. A feature that I think fits Holmes extremely well. Michael Williams as Watson was simply superb. Bags of warmth, but tempered with wonderful common sense. Andrew Sachs, while having big shoes to fill, has done a wonderful job in carrying on in the part. What impresses me the most about the BBC series with Merrison is that the writing is top-notch throughout, with by a a consistent effort to make the stories come alive in a vibrant and relative manner to the modern listener. The Merrison and Williams, and later Sachs, series make Holmes and Watson seem like fully realized, hard working detectives functioning in a real world, rather than actors declaiming lines in overwrought Victorian melodrama. Bringing that sort of vibrancy to the material is why I admire thius series above all others.

While not radio drama, as such, I've also quite enjoyed the recent audio productions coming from Big Finish in the UK. The first of which was an adaptation of David Stuart Davies one-man play "Sherlock Holmes - The Last Act" featuring Roger Llewellyn as Holmes. Llewellyn has toured with the play, throughout the UK, for the better part of the last decade, but I've never been able to see him in the role. Happily the Big Finish audio production has allowed me to get a sense of what he brings to the role. Llewellyn, like Merrison, has a wonderful humanity to his Holmes, and given that the play is a reminiscence set after Watson's death, exploring their years together, it allows Llewellyn to take Holmes through all the highs and lows of their years together. I wasn't impressed by the script when I read it years ago, but Llewellyn's performance allowed to me see it in a new light. Very good. At the moment I have the follow-up CD (Sherlock Holmes: The Death and Life) on order, along with the Big Finish adaptation of Brian Clemens' play Sherlock Holmes: Holmes and the Ripper (with Nicholas Briggs as Holmes).

Oops, sorry, forgot to include a link to the Big Finish Sherlock Holmes range. Some info can be had at http://holmesaudios.com/ or for ordering info go to http://bigfinish.com/ranges/Sherlock-Holmes