The drama opens in 1901 London , shortly after the publication of Arthur Conan Doyle's The Great Boer War . At the turn of the 20th century the Metropolitan Police were overwhelmed with bizarre cases so they turned to outsiders including Houdini and Doyle , who collaborated with New Scotland Yard on some unsolved and inexplicable crimes . Then the world-famous magician Harry Houdini (Michael Weston) and a legendary detective writer Arthur Conan Doyle (Stephen Mangan) join forces to carry out a fundamental mission : Catching killers , a main issue that is elementary to them . Houdini and Doyle become involved in the investigation of several mysterious deaths . Along the way they are supported by an intelligent female cop , Adelaide Stratton (Rebecca Liddiard) , Scotland Yard's first woman constable . As they investigate several cases , such as : The death of a murdered nun at a convent ; as protagonists get involved when a boy claims he is the reincarnation of a man whom he says Belworth murdered ; as they find out an issue about a faith healer who appears to have a great power when a heckler drops dead at one of the healer's public sessions ; the death of a motorcar entrepreneur that is initially attributed to a mysterious dark demon ; when the housemaid of Doyle's old friend Bram Stoker is murdered with a stake through the heart , suspicions arise that Stoker may either be the killer or a vampire ; when the duo confronting a travelling medium who uses her powers to help the local police find a missing girl ; when they find a murderous poltergeist in Canada, encountering Thomas Edison and when a young man wakes up naked in a burned out circle claiming that his wife was kidnapped by aliens . And , finally , the trio investigate a small town where almost everyone died simultaneously with no visible cause.Exciting and charming series formed by 10 episodes , one season , it premiered on ITV in the United Kingdom March 2016 and in which Houdini/Michael Weston and Doyle/Stephen Mangan form a sympathetic and attractive couple . It is in fact true that Arthur Conan Doyle was friend for some time with Harry Houdini . In fact they attempted to discover fakes , false mediums , frauds Spiritualist psychics , scheming clairvoyants and Houdini was really convinced that Spiritualist mediums employed trickery . Although Arthur Conan became convinced that Houdini himself has supernatural powers , but Harry was apparently unable to convince Doyle that his feats were simply illusions , leading to a bitter public falling out between the two . The series relies on the different , opposite characters , as Harry Houdini is a rational skeptic and atheist whereas Dr. Arthur Conan Doyle is a believer in the paranormal and supernatural . They argue over whether the causes are natural or supernatural , and often bet on the cause , which causes their police liaison , Constable Adelaide Stratton/Rebecca Liddiard , some embarrassment and angry . Furthermore , in the series appears a lot of notorious secondary players , such as : Tim McInnerny , Diana Quick , Nathan Stewart , Laura Fraser , Ewen Bremmer as Sherlock Holmes , Louise Delamere : real-life wife to Stephen Mangan , and Paul Ritter as Bram Stoker and James Flett as Doyle's father , among others. The series was well set and shot on stages at The Space Project in Manchester . The series originally created by David Hoselton and David N. Titcher was well directed by Stephen Hopkins , Robert Lieberman , Jeff Renfroe , Edward Bazalgette and Daniel O'Hara .

Watched the latest episode tonight. I like the show, but ever since the first or second episode, Houdini's part could have been played by anyone. Houdini was an escape artist and magician. We haven't seen any of these skills since the first couple of episodes. Why not? If you going to have Houdini as a character you have to show case what he was famous for. Now he seems like a poor mans Watson. Write more Houdini skills to bring us back for more. Doyle is very likable, some times sort of a wimp, but he is a writer not a fighter...The stories have been very creative with adding notable characters from the era the stories take place, i.e. Bram Stoker, Edison,etc. The show is entertaining, and I am a huge Sherlock Holmes fan, so this show has been fun to watch, but hoping they will do a little better and get Houdini doing Houdini thing.

The best way to describe this series is X-files meets Downton Abbey. Personally, I'm a fan of stories that mix history in fiction, so perhaps I'm bias in its favor, but there are several aspects of this series which are successful.The show's premise is actually fairly straight forward. The characters of Harry Houdini and Arthur Conan Doyle team up with a plucky female detective from Scotland Yard in order to solve a series of cases. Naturally, each of mysteries have what appear to be some element of the supernatural. Most of the stories also touch on the personal struggles of the two leads, so watching from the beginning will enhance your ability to to follow and enjoy each episodes.What really makes this series are the actors. In addition to having really talented leads, the cast is strong overall. Perhaps it's just me, but I am sick to death of reality TV and hackneyed sit-coms. Consequently, getting to watch actors who actually know how to act is, for me, more valuable than ever.Another thing that makes this very enjoyable to watch is its visual appeal. The costumes and set designs are very well done and, even if not always historically accurate, evocative of a romantic and bygone era.The stories themselves are fast-paced and fairly intricate by today's standards. They also blend fantasy and reality in a way that's pretty darn appealing.Although billed as a mini-series, if this show doesn't get a second run it will be a shame. It's charming, beautiful, and very watchable.

First it's important to note that, as I said, I'm going to compare/contrast Houdini & Doyle to other shows that are currently airing or available to watch. I don't believe I'll be giving anything away about the show that isn't in the promos for it; but that doesn't mean others might not interpret it as such so better warned than sorry right?!Houdini & Doyle is well written. Which is as good a place as any to start because the best actors in the world have a hard time doing their jobs well if they have nothing to work with right from the start. That, thankfully, is not a problem here. It's also quite well cast. An equally important point to the success or failure of any show. You need a good script and a good cast to bring it to life. It is also helpful to have great sets and costumes to make everything else within the story really "pop out of it" so-to-speak. It appears that the producers have been very respectful in capturing the elements of the period in London within which the story takes place and it also seems very respectful about remaining true to what we, the public, already know about these two great men. Both of whom are genuine historical icons and both of whom have specific character traits of which most are aware. I am genuinely pleased that what I've seen coincides with what I know. I also respect that the few surprises they've thrown in are both plausible and serve very well to make the show more interesting. So with all that in mind, here's what you really need to know about Houdini & Doyle the TV show.First, unlike Jekyll & Hyde, they do not appear to be under the impression that what they are trying to create is "breakout television". This isn't Penny Dreadful and they know it. What's more, while they are creating a beautiful environment, that environment isn't designed to do anything more than be a place in which the events will unfold. Jekyll & Hyde, at least to me, seem to have created a spectacular collection of sets but given their actors very little to do within them. This is definitely not the case with H & D.Also, unlike a wide variety of shows, they are not trying to take themselves too seriously and they're not going for either great depth or tremendous intensity. H & D is not necessarily "edge of your chair" viewing. But it works quite well for them because it's clear that this was something they were never going for in the first place. At it's core H & D is smart and funny with just a dash of intentional "fluffiness". So while it may not be "must-see TV", it is also most assuredly not a "guilty pleasure". H & D, to my way of thinking and seeing, is a show that's fun to watch, includes some great surprises along the way and is a new take on the notion of "English cozy" murder mysteries. The characters are quite human and all have interesting flaws. But they remain highly likable in spite or because of those flaws and it becomes clear in a hurry that while they may never admit it, they also genuinely like each other.What really sets it apart from other procedural mysteries is that, although they assuredly want to solve each case and determine how each death occurred, they are taking entirely separate but scientific approaches in reasoning. And it is this fact that generates both the fun and the interest in what might otherwise be a fairly ordinary "murder of the week" mystery show. Plus, while Houdini might be sitting on one side of a "see-saw" so to speak, and Doyle sits at the completely opposite end, there is a quite fascinating and unusual third character sitting in the middle of them both. A character that makes everything come together for an entirely different set of motivations.In the end, I like it! We're only 3 episodes in but I've made the commitment to ride through the first season with them because I'm truly intrigued by what I've seen so far. Remembering that this is a show to watch FOR FUN! They're not hiding anything, there are no secret pasts or agendas to figure out and it's not the story of "the everlasting great struggle between good and evil". If that's what you're looking for, go somewhere else. But if you're tired of waiting for the "agendas" to play out and sick to death of waiting for something important to finally happen on some other show… go watch H & D and relax! It's a little bit of fun, a little bit of mystery with a little bit of surprise thrown in to keep the mundane well out of the picture. It may not be brilliant programming, but since it isn't trying to be, it's able to do it's own thing well and more than satisfactorily!So watch a few episodes and make up your own mind. In the meanwhile, I'm just going to be sitting here fervently hoping I have given you just enough information to make an informed choice. But not so much as to be blacklisted and thrown into an IMDb "black hole", never to be heard from again! ; - )