MADEMOISELLE HOLMES - SEASON 1, EPISODES 1 & 2: ON OUVRE SES CHAKRAS! & #RECHERCHEK-LISTA (TF1)

[Favourite of the Month][Spoiler-free review] After HPI and Panda, French private channel TF1 adds another gem to its thursday night crime/detective drama line-up with Mademoiselle Holmes. This 6 x 52-minute series was created by Victoria Spennato (Face à Face) and Laëtitia Kügler with Laure Mentzel and Mélusine Laura Raynaud.

 

Mademoiselle Holmes is loosely based on the characters of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, from the stories written by author Arthur Conan Doyle (fully in the public domain since last year). It will premiere on April 11th with the first couple of episodes.

The bottom line: HPI meets Elementary.

Mademoiselle Holmes stars Lola Dewaere (Astrid et Raphaëlle, Crimes à...) as Charlie Holmes, a discrete and unassuming young woman. She lives in an old manor in Loire-Atlantique with her grandfather Georges, plays the violin and gets around by bicycle. Charlie is none other than the great granddaughter of the famous Sherlock Holmes. Though she works for the police, she only registers complaints in the squad of Commissaire Florence Billon. In the first episode, Billon asks Charlie to find who's throwing onions in a school playground while Commandant Chris Hervieu and his detectives are mobilised on the search of a missing little girl.

Comedian, actor and TV personality Tom Villa (Munch) co-stars as the sympathetic Dr. Samy Vatel, a trainee in forensic medicine and a fan of Sherlock Holmes. After Charlie Holmes is hit by a car, her personality changes completely and her extraordinary intelligence gets unleashed. Assisted by her "Watson" Samy, the unpredictable Mademoiselle Holmes is looking for clues. In the shadows loom Charlie's own weaknesses, family secrets and the descendants of an adversary from the past. After the cleaning lady with a 160 I.Q. turned consultant for the police (HPI), here comes Miss Sherlock Holmes in Nantes!

Mademoiselle Holmes surprises as a brilliant and ambitious take on the work of Arthur Conan Doyle with its English atmosphere (in the region Pays de la Loire), the promising Holmesian story arc, an appropriate music by François Liétout (Les Combattantes) and even a portion of the series shot in London. Lola Dewaere looks like she's having great fun with her genius detective role and Tom Villa is perfect as the subtle sidekick. French national treasure Daniel Prévost plays the quiet but mysterious Georges Holmes. Commandant Hervieu, the "Inspector Lestrade" of Charlie Holmes, is played by Thomas Jouannet (Sophie Cross).

Also starring Alika Del Sol (Simon Coleman) as Commissaire Billon, Armelle Abibou (Jess), Oscar Berthe (Loïc), Valentin du Peuty (Simon), Éric Naggar (Pathologist Alfred Camus), etc. Episode 1 guest stars Aelie Laurent Vielcanet (Anna), Marion Malenfant (Vinca Le Pavec)... In the second episode, Charlie Holmes and Samy Vatel investigate the disappearance of an influencer. Samy discovers something about Charlie's medallion. Guest starring Éric Poulain (Jean-Yves Perrault), Anaïs Delengaigne (K-Lista Perrault), Inès Defossé (Eva), Alexis Loizon (Enzo BG), Nicolas Sansler (Gilbert), Alexandra Jussiau (Cathy Musso) and Mathias Jamain Houngnikpo (Assistant).

Produced by Marysol (Newen Group) with TF1 and RTL tvi. Filmed between March and June 2023 with the support of Région des Pays de la Loire and the help of the Bureau d'accueil des tournages des Pays de la Loire. Cyrielle Mottin and Paloma Martin y Prada are the producers. Cinematography by Christophe Legal. Editing by Stéphanie Gaurier and Mathieu Molinaro (Episode 1), Stéphanie Gaurier and Gaétan Boussand (Episode 2). Main title sequence by François Basset and Jules Maillard. The manor of Georges and Charlie Holmes is in fact the Château du Docteur Daguin in Sion-les-Mines. 

Episode 1 written by Victoria Spennato and Laëtitia Kügler with Laure Mentzel and Mélusine Laura Raynaud. Episode 2 penned by Laure Mentzel and Mélusine Laura Raynaud with Agathe Robilliard, Chloé Glachant and Sven Jacquet. Story arc by Victoria Spennato and Laëtitia Kügler. Episodes 1 and 2 directed by Frédéric Berthe (Les Randonneuses). Mademoiselle Holmes is distributed by Newen Connect.

https://tvmag.lefigaro.fr/programme-tv/series/d-astrid-et-raphaelle-a-mademoiselle-holmes-lola-dewaere-une-actrice-enquete-de-soi-20231117

See also:

https://www.ouest-france.fr/pays-de-la-loire/sion-les-mines-44590/le-docteur-daguin-et-mlle-holmes-marquent-lhistoire-du-chateau-neogothique-de-sion-les-mines-f330d51e-d302-11ed-9078-c96e51806d43 (Château du Docteur Daguin)