Amateur sleuths may have noticed something mysterious has been afoot recently in the usually sleepy Cardiff suburb of St Mellons.
On an unassuming industrial estate, big adventures have been happening behind closed doors – filming for Prime Video’s latest TV series, Young Sherlock.
Directed by Guy Ritchie and supported by Creative Wales, via the Welsh Government’s Production Fund, this brand new eight-part high-end TV series is a prequel to the original story of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s iconic fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes, in a re-imagining of the character’s coming of age.
As a result of this support, the production is projected to add tens of millions of pounds of economic value into the local economy.
Additionally, the team behind Young Sherlock will hire upwards of 340 Wales-based crew for over a year and deliver a bespoke training programme providing high-level placements for ten trainees and 45 work-shadowing placements, across a range of disciplines.
The Welsh Government funding has also supported the build of extensive sets at its filming base, Great Point Studios Cardiff.
The Minister for Creative Industries, Jack Sargeant, recently visited the set. He said:
“Young Sherlock is the largest scale production yet to be based at Great Point Studios in Cardiff. It was literally awesome to see what Motive Pictures, Inspirational Entertainment and Prime Video have brought to Wales, not just physically but also with their world-renowned brands.
“This is a true show of Wales delivering world-class infrastructure for film and TV, and Creative Wales and the Welsh Government have played an integral part in bringing the production to our capital. It is a huge opportunity delivering significant economic and reputational benefits for Wales and our screen industry.
“Importantly the high-level training opportunities our funding has helped to secure will also make a significant contribution to our goal of strengthening and futureproofing the screen industry here, now and for years to come.”
Simon Maxwell from production company Motive Pictures, who are overseeing physical production and bringing Young Sherlock to life, said:
“It’s a total pleasure filming here at Great Point Studios in Wales with all that the country has to offer – from world-class crews to some of the UK’s most stunning landscapes and locations. It’s a perfect locale to bring to life the vivid story world of Young Sherlock and to showcase the quintessential Britishness of Holmesian lore.”
Young Sherlock is being written and executive produced by showrunner Matthew Parkhill (Deep State, Rogue) with executive producers Simon Kelton (Eddie the Eagle), Ivan Atkinson (The Gentlemen), Simon Maxwell (The Woman in the Wall, Deep State), Dhana Gilbert (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Colin Wilson (The Mandalorian), Marc Resteghini, and co-executive producer Harriet Creelman. It is inspired by Andy Lane’s critically acclaimed book series Young Sherlock Holmes. Physical production is running through Motive Pictures.
Kelton originally conceived the project and packaged it with Atkinson, then partnered with Motive, Gilbert, and Resteghini, who developed and brought the series to Amazon MGM Studios.
