Jeremy Brett

Brett belonged to the Woodmen of Arden, an archery club established in 1758. His father and brothers were also members.

His father, Lt. Colonel Henry William "Bill" Huggins, was born in 1890.

The refined and debonair English actor Jeremy Brett will forever be best remembered for his long-running and critically acclaimed portrayal of Sherlock Holmes for Britain's Granada Television. From a privileged background, Brett was educated at England's most prestigious independent school, Eton College. After training as an actor at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, Brett made his professional stage debut in repertory in 1954. He became a noteworthy classical actor who was to make regular appearances on stage, including many with the National Theatre. Brett was as cultured off screen as on. His interests included classical music, archery and horseback riding.

He played Audrey Hepburn's brother on War and Peace (1956) and her suitor in My Fair Lady (1964).

His son with wife Anna Massey: David Huggins, born August 14, 1959.

All his singing in My Fair Lady (1964) was dubbed by Bill Shirley, as Brett admitted in 1994.

He has three roles in common with Michael York: (1) Brett played d'Artagnan in The Three Musketeers (1966) while York played him in The Three Musketeers (1973), The Four Musketeers: Milady's Revenge (1974), The Return of the Musketeers (1989) and La Femme Musketeer (2004), (2) Brett played Sherlock Holmes in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1984), The Return of Sherlock Holmes (1986), The Sign of Four (1987), The Hound of the Baskervilles (1988), The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes (1991) and The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes (1994) while York played in Tom and Jerry Meet Sherlock Holmes (2010) and (3) Brett played King Arthur in Morte d'Arthur (1984) while York played him in The Wonderful World of Disney: A Knight in Camelot (1998).

He was briefly considered for the role of James Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), and later auditioned for Live and Let Die (1973).

He performed with Tom Baker as a member of the National Theatre in the early 1970s. Both actors would go on to play Sherlock Holmes on British television in the 1980s. Baker would play the part in The Hound of the Baskervilles (1982) for the BBC and Brett played the character on rival channel ITV from 1984 onwards.

Some obituaries reported he was in Nicholas and Alexandra (1971), but they may have confused this film with War and Peace (1956).

He appeared with his former wife, Anna Massey, in the BBC television production of Rebecca (1979), where he played Maxim de Winter and she played his housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers.

His greatest popularity and acclaim would come with his portrayal of Sherlock Holmes on television from the 1980s through to the 1990s. Where so many have tried and failed to capture the essence of the character, either being derided or forgotten, Brett's widely praised take on it has been described by many as superlative and even definitive.

He was famous for his portrayal of Sherlock Holmes in the television series The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1984) and The Return of Sherlock Holmes (1986). When he learned that his Sherlock Holmes was very popular with children (who saw him as a superhero), he was troubled with the fact that Holmes is a cocaine user. In response, he sought and obtained permission from Arthur Conan Doyle's daughter to have Holmes overcome and abandon his addiction, signified with Holmes burying his syringe in the episode "The Devil's Foot.".

He was the uncle of the popular English actor, Martin Clunes, known for roles in series such as British Men Behaving Badly (1992) and Doc Martin (2004). Brett's sister was Clunes' mother.

A memorial service was held for him at St. Martin-in-the-Fields, London on 29 November 1995.

His grandson, Dan Huggins, born in 2002 to David Huggins and his wife, Madeleine Christie (married 2001).