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Sherlock season 5 release date: Andrew Scott says we shouldn't expect BBC show to return anytime soon

'I think another general election would come first'

Jack Shepherd
Wednesday 07 June 2017 09:45 BST
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Following the fourth season of Sherlock’s conclusion earlier this year, many fans of the BBC show have wondered when — if ever — Benedict Cumberbatch’s detective would return.

Steven Moffat would be “moderately surprised” if Sherlock doesn’t return for a fifth season. Martin Freeman “does not know how long it will go on”, while Cumberbatch will “never say never”.

Speaking on The One Show, Moriarty actor Andrew Scott spoke about another season, but reiterated how Cumberbatch and Freeman’s heavy schedules will likely delay things for a very long time.

“I don’t think there’s another series of Sherlock coming soon,” he told the hosts, joking: “I think another general election would come first.”

Scott continued: “We’re not doing [Sherlock] for another couple of years. Everybody got quite busy, you know? You want to keep it fresh and stuff like that.”

The BBC remains as optimistic as ever, the broadcast reported as being “reasonably hopeful” a new series could touch down in 2019. Here's what Cumberbatch, Freeman, Moffat, and the BBC have previously said about season five.

Chances are the broadcaster may be rethinking plans to commission another series: the last episode of season four saw Sherlock's audience drop to an all-time low for the show, overnight ratings seeing under 6 million people tune in. However, much of this may have been due to the episode leaking early in Russian.

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