Nigel Miles-Thomas is starring as Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock Holmes: The Last Act at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe.
“1916. Drawn from two years of Sussex retirement for the funeral of his friend, Dr Watson, Holmes returns to Baker Street to resolve the last act of his epic career.
A theatrical evening then unfolds, with fourteen characters all played by Nigel Miles-Thomas in a tour de force performance.
Cross-examinations, heated arguments between Holmes and Watson, and all manner of comic and serious interactions, between many famous Conan Doyle characters.”
Where: Drawing Room at Assembly Rooms
When: 31 Jul-24 Aug
Ticket link: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/sherlock-holmes-the-last-act
Read on for more from Nigel.
Your show is written by Holmesian legend David Stuart Davies and it’s a solo piece. What drew you to it?
Yes the play is a solo play but it incorporates 14 other characters.
I had always wanted to play Sherlock Holmes and being asked by David Stuart Davies to assume the mantel was a great honour.
It was a major challenge to put the play together but I had wonderful direction from Gareth Armstrong who had directed the original production.
What makes Sherlock Holmes such a popular character after all these years?
Sherlock Holmes remains such a popular character mainly through so many wonderful adaptations of Conan Doyle’s stories.
The Hound of the Baskervilles combines mystery, horror and magnificent detection. The idea of a consulting detective, working away from the mainstream police system gives so much room for the imagination to work with Holmes and Dr Watson in solving the cases.
How did you make your start as a performer?
I started acting at school, inspired by a visiting Shakespeare Company. I was hooked and still am.
Being heavily encouraged by my English teacher, I auditioned for The Arts Educational Schools in London and then began my career as a professional actor in 1978, being engaged in weekly rep in Torquay as an acting ASM.
What are you looking forward to at Edinburgh? Do Fringe festivals inspire you?
I am looking forward to my 30th Edinburgh Fringe. The wide variety of events and the diversity of subjects is a constant source of wonder to me and I want to see as many shows as possible.
The Edinburgh Fringe is always a huge challenge, not only artistically, but also requires physical endurance and personal discipline.
What’s next for you and the World’s Greatest Detective?
I will be taking Sherlock Holmes The Last Act on tour around the UK from September and then with great fortune to have be chosen to perform with Cunard on The Queen Mary 2 from New York to Southampton.
I begin the new project of Sherlock Holmes: Death and Life this Autumn with the intention of bring the play to the Assembly Rooms in 2026.
I have my tickets booked already. This sounds like such a heart-warming piece. Thank you for sharing. Bella Merlin (TILLY NO-BODY)