Just bought the Wilmer shows on DVD. They haven't been remastered, but are still a kick to have.
The most fun is seeing Patrick Troughton (The second Doctor Who) in The Devil's Foot, and even more is seeing David Burke (Watson in the 1984 Granada series) as Sir George in The Beryl Coronet.
http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holmes-1964-1965-Douglas-Wilmer/dp/B003 NF97NA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1286144375&sr=1-3
I have collections with both wilmer and cushing. The ones with Wilmer rank well with other Sherlocks but the ones with cushing are both stagy and stodgy.
shareCompletely disagree; for me the Cushing episodes are much stronger in atmosphere and capture the feel of the original stories far more successfully. Cushing is also the better Holmes, I find Wilmer rather dull and unengaging, personally. There are some good episodes for sure; The Devil's Foot, The Copper Beaches and The Retired Colourman especially but there are also several duds and overall the earlier series is, like its leading man, overrated IMO.
shareI have to say I agree with you totally there, The Wilmer episodes seem a lot more professional somehow, I normally love Peter Cushing, but this role was not his by comparison.
When he said Mr Leeman was dead i thought he said he's still in bed