Adaptations of Sherlock Holmes faithful adherence to the original characterization. One famous radio appearance starred Orson Welles as Sherlock Holmes in an adaptation of one of William Gillette's plays. This was broadcast in September 1938 as part of "The Mercury Theater on the Air" series on CBS Radio. Throughout the early 1940s on American Radio, Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce performed as Holmes and Watson, respectively, in several series of canonical and original Sherlock Holmes stories on "The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" radio show. These broadcasts were loosely based on Doyle's cases. When Rathbone finally departed the role before the 1947 season, Tom
Adaptations of Sherlock Holmes of every story in the canon between 1989 and 1998. "The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes", a new series consisting of original stories written exclusively by Bert Coules was then commissioned, but following Williams' death from cancer in 2001, he was replaced by Andrew Sachs. The episodes of "The Further Adventures" were based on throwaway references in Doyle's short stories and novels. The complete canonical run is available on CD and audio tape. "The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" is also available on CD as four box sets each containing four episodes. BBC Radio 2 also broadcast in 1999 a