Currently airing on Britain’s commercial network ITV, “Arthur and George” stars Martin Clunes (“Doc Martin”) as Scottish writer and physician Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle, best known as the creator of Sherlock Holmes.
Born into an Irish-Catholic family in the U.K., Doyle was educated at two Jesuit schools — in the U.K. and Austria — after 
which he rejected religion and became an agnostic. Later in life, he became fascinated with Spiritualism and became friends with skeptic Harry Houdini, only to have the notion of the supernatural come between them.
“Arthur and George” — set to air on PBS’ “Masterpiece” later in 2015 — is a three-part adaptation of a novel by Julian Barnes inspired by the real-life story of young solicitor George Edalji, the son of a father from Bombay and an English mother. Edalji’s father converted to Christianity and, in 1876, became the Anglican vicar of Great Wryley in Staffordshire, England.
From the official Website for Birmingham, England:
There is evidence that some of the people of Great Wyrley did not accept him because they did not understand how an Asian man could be a minister of a Christian church. In October 1903 George was convicted on a charge of maliciously wounding a pony and received a seven-year sentence of penal servitude. There were rumours that he had sacrificed horses to his alien gods but the the evidence against him was threadbare and distorted. The fact that the Edalji family were Christians also made it seem unlikely that he would have been guilty of such an act. The police appear to have dedicated most of their effort to proving that George Edalji was guilty instead of trying to find the real culprit. When the incident occurred, the police went straight to George Edalji’s house from the field where the injured animal was found before carrying out any other investigation.
In “Arthur and George,” Doyle, who’s in somewhat of a funk after the death of has wife, takes on the case of Edalji (Arsher Ali), who is trying to rebuild his life after being released from prison after three years. With the help of his devoted manservantAlfred “Woody” Wood (Charles Edwards), Doyle seeks to discover the truth.
At the same time, the series explores Doyle’s relationship with the younger Jean Leckie (Hattie Morahan), with whom he maintained a platonic relationship while his wife was still alive.
Also starring are Art Malik and Emma Fielding as Edalji’s parents.
In a PBS press release, Clunes said:
How perfect that Arthur & George will air on PBS, as public television has been such a wonderful home to Doc Martin. I’m sure that our new series will be a treat for Doc Martin fans, and for everyone who enjoys a terrific drama.
Here’s a sneak peek:
Images: Martin Clunes in “Arthur and George,” courtesy ITV/WGBH; Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Wikimedia Commons
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