BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 / Shortlist interview

**Posted by JaneCo** August 29, 2012 5:10 pm

Shortlist.com interview link below

http://www.shortlist.com/entertainment/tv/benedict-cumberbatch

**Posted by hepzibah** August 29, 2012 5:22 pm

Damn you, Jane, you just beat me to it, I knew I should have posted it before I read it

It's an excellent article, gives a real feel for his personality. no Mr Bland here

I'm sure someone somewhere, (not on this site, of course) will take umbrage at some of his comments, but as the man himself would say, "F#%k 'em"

Last edited by hepzibah (August 29, 2012 5:23 pm)

**Posted by JaneCo** August 29, 2012 5:27 pm

Love it when a sentence starts like that...

What I really mean is ...oops sorry hepz

Last edited by JaneCo (August 29, 2012 5:28 pm)

**Posted by hepzibah** August 29, 2012 5:31 pm

ooh, such a sincere apology, it brought a tear to my eye... no, wait, that was an eyelash...

**Posted by Davina** August 29, 2012 5:46 pm

Great article. Parts made me smile and other bits made me laugh aloud. I can just hear him say those things. Confident, articulate and knows his own mind.

**Posted by SusiGo** August 29, 2012 5:50 pm

So many ****, great interview. I'd love to have seen him swatting the fly.

**Posted by deerstalker** August 29, 2012 11:03 pm

LOL. Benedict does not hold back.

**Posted by Wholocked** August 29, 2012 11:23 pm

Haha that photo at the end is hilarious. I love that he's so candid in interviews.

And yeah, some people will take umbrage. I've read comments about how he sounds arrogant in some of his interviews and I'm like "really, you can judge that from words on a page?"

I'd really like to see some of these interviews on film, so tone & expression can be taken into account.

**Posted by Davina** August 30, 2012 10:25 am

They confuse arrogance with self-confidence.

**Posted by deerstalker** August 31, 2012 5:25 am

Benedict's quotes are again taken out of context to create a controversy.
It is a joy to read his interviews because it's clear he is an intense thinking human being, but perhaps he should filter out his stream of conciousness a little. Now he is issuing disclaimers again that he had been misinterpreted. That must be so nervewracking and annoying for him. I would hate to read standart, guarded answers from Cumberbatch though...

**Posted by Wholocked** August 31, 2012 5:59 am

Davina wrote:
They confuse arrogance with self-confidence.

So true. We live in a society where negatives are okay and positives are turned into negatives.

**Posted by hepzibah** August 31, 2012 9:22 am

One of the reasons we love him is his honestly and lack of prevarication. And eyes, hands, hair, voice, etc..

**Posted by SusiGo** August 31, 2012 9:27 am

hepzibah wrote:
One of the reasons we love him is his honestly and lack of prevarication. And eyes, hands, hair, voice, etc..

Exactly my thoughts.

**Posted by hepzibah** August 31, 2012 11:26 am

Oops, looks like he was misquoted yet again. Scroll down to the end of the article for his statement.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/benedict-cumberbatch-jonny-lee-miller-elementary-sherlock-366932

**Posted by JaneCo** August 31, 2012 11:55 am

Thanks for posting this Hepz, I must admit that the original article appeared to contradict what he said at the PBS question and answer session, so didn't quite ring true to me. Delighted to see this statement published.

**Posted by Wholocked** August 31, 2012 12:00 pm

From what I've seen of him in interviews etc he seems to have a very healthy sense of humour, which leans a little towards tongue-in-cheek or sarcasm. Unfortunately, that kind of humour just lends itself to being re-quoted as if it was said in seriousness.

I'd hate to see him censor himself to avoid this but he may have no choice. It's a shame. As Hep said, his honesty and (apparent - I'm cynical too) transparency are some of the qualities his fans appreciate about him.

**Posted by hepzibah** August 31, 2012 12:30 pm

Another interview which contradicts his alleged negativity re Elementary

http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/story/2012-08-27/sherlock-holmes-elementary/57356504/1

I'm getting a little tired of the misquotes, how hard it is to print what he ACTUALLY SAYS, doesn't sell papers, I guess. Now have a headache (Batchache, oh, that sounds naughty)

**Posted by Mattlocked** August 31, 2012 2:41 pm

I know the problem quite well... We have a "special sense of humor" in the office. When I leave work I have to switch it off, else I could get problems with other people who don't get it.
The same problem I have with colleagues or customers from other countries on the phone. I often have to add:"Hey, this was a joke!" Also a language problem, I admit.
My swedish colleague obviously didn't know for a long time what a smiley means in an email. So quite often he got angry when I was just joking.... *sighs* He even once called my boss to complain about a mail from me and then I had to show the smiley to him. Thank god he understood.

**Posted by SusiGo** August 31, 2012 2:48 pm

Even within Germany people seem to have a different sense of humour. Where I live we tend to be ironic and sometimes a bit sarcastic when joking. People from other parts of Germany sometimes don't get it and become angry or feel insulted. And we all speak the same language.
In written language or on the phone you also lack the facial expressions and gestures that often reveal the meaning behind your words. Therefore I'm quite happy using smileys.

**Posted by Mattlocked** August 31, 2012 3:04 pm

Yes, we talked a bit about using smileys somewhere here before and I also think in written texts by phone or mail (and here) it really helps understanding and being understood.
Now just imagine Ben at his next interview:"Working with Martin Freeman was not very nice - put in a smiley here, thank you - and he was punching me all the time. Really annoying! - another smiley here, please." LOL