Jared Harris will play Professor Moriarty in Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes 2.

After months of speculation, Mad Men's Harris has signed on as Sherlock's nemesis for Ritchie's sequel. Jared, son of Richard Harris, is best know for his role as Lane Pryce in the TV series. He's also appeared in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Igby Goes Down.

The role of Moriarty was originally rumoured to be played by Brad Pitt after Sherlock Holmes' teaser ending. But the subtle and excellently likeable Harris has taken the part in what is a brilliant and wise casting decision - his stuffy Brit is fast becoming one of Mad Men's best characters. He could easily be an arch villain. Just look at those eyebrows.

Harris joins Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law, both returning along with director Guy Ritchie. The cast also includes Noomi Rapace and Stephen Fry as Sherlock's brother, Mycroft.

For those doubting Jared's acting abilities, I remind you that he is the man who recently held a steak to his crotch on national television. And then did a great impression of a Japanese onlooker in the Godzilla movie rip-off Gamera. He drank heavily throughout both.

Now that Noomi Rapace is in on the sequel, Sherlock Holmes has got itself someone to play Mycroft Holmes. That someone is Stephen Fry.

Yes, the actor, comedian, writer and all-round King of Twitter has signed on to play the sleuth's older brother in Sherlock Holmes 2. Guy Ritchie's sequel will include Sherlock's mysterious sibling, which the excellent Mark Gatiss recently played in BBC's Sherlock, who is often portrayed as wiser than Sherlock, and more involved with the government's shadier dealings.

Fry made the announcement on Danny Baker's BBC radio show. The role sees Stephen continue to build a reputation in America following his TV series Stephen Fry in America and occasional appearances on US show Bones. He joins the returning stars of the first Sherlock Holmes movie, Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law.

Written by Kieran and Michele Mulroney, Sherlock Holmes 2 starts production next month. The aim is to have it all packaged and shipped out for Friday 16th December next year. By which time we'll hopefully know who will be playing Moriarty...

Following her recent trip to Hollywood, Noomi Rapace has signed on to star in Sherlock Holmes 2.

Since The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo first hit cinemas, Rapace's intense performance as Lisbeth Salander has won her fans all over the industry. Now, the 30 year old actress will be taking on her first English-speaking role.

Work on Guy Ritchie's sequel has been speeding up over the months, with no official word yet on who will be playing Holmes' nemesis Moriarty. Speculation about the appearance of Mycroft, Sherlock's brother, is also doing the rounds. Until now, the only confirmed news has been that Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law will both return as Holmes and Dr Watson.

As for Rapace, she may well follow Rachel McAdams' steps and play a love interest for one of the two gents. She may even be a villain. Some sources are suggesting she'll be playing a French gypsy for some reason. Either way, she's bound to be impressive.

Shooting starts on Sherlock by the end of the year, with Ritchie's second outing now suffering from even higher expectations: they'll somehow have to top the BBC's recent take on the deerstalking detective. 

December was the expected date for Sherlock Holmes' sequel to start shooting, but things have been moving quickly, with the shoot jumping forward several months, according to Jude Law.

Dr Watson told Empire Magazine that October is the new December: "It looks likely that we're going to shoot the second Sherlock Holmes in October... I don't know yet where the story will go, but there are a lot of Sherlock Holmes novels to choose from."

So no news on the story, but the finalised screenplay can't be far away now if Warner Bros are bringing the schedule forward. Maybe Guy Ritchie has discovered the word processor. He certainly hasn't discovered his new villain yet, although Daniel Day-Lewis is still rumoured as a wishlist figure for Sherlock's nemesis Moriarty (a far better choice than Brad Pitt).

As for Holmes' companion, he's taking it easy before sleuthing kicks off again: "I've had a long period of doing nothing, which has been self-imposed and wonderfully rewarding, I have to say, but mostly so because I've got a very busy second half of the year coming up". With a role in Scorsese's Hugo Cabret plus Soderbergh's upcoming thriller Contagion, he's not half wrong. With Sherlock Holmes 2 getting ready to shoot, he's got one hectic schedule.

Not that he dreads a return to Ritchie's streets of period London: "I had so much fun making Sherlock Holmes," he explained to Empire, "I was really pleased it was such a success but mostly because that will give me the opportunity to work with Robert and Guy again."

Good news for Sherlock Holmes fans - the non-deerstalkered detective will be returning to our screens a little sooner than expected. Yes, Joel Silver has informed the LA Times that things are moving very quickly on a sequel. No surprise, really, given the solid performance of Sherlock at the box office, holding a steady second place in the shadow of Avatar's 3-D domination.

But this means more than just Downey Jr dropping out of Cowboys and Aliens, because Guy Ritchie will probably have to leave Lobo - his violent adaptation of the titular DC bounty hunter - or at least put it on hold. Silver said: "I don't think he's going to do it now... The studio wants us and Guy to focus on making another Sherlock Holmes."

Seeing as Sherlock was the least Guy Ritchie movie Guy Ritchie has ever made, this could very well be good news for everyone. Except for Guy Ritchie fans, of course. But they can just go and watch RocknRolla again.

Director: Guy Ritchie
Cast: Robert Downey Jr, Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Mark Strong, Kelly Reilly, Eddie Marsan
Certificate: 12A
Trailers/Clips

When the news spread that Guy Ritchie was taking on Arthur Conan Doyle's beloved brainbox, a little bit of fear was understandable. After all, this was the man who brought the world RocknRolla. The only people who weren't scared were the director's devoted fans. Not that their opinion mattered. And sure enough, he's given us a Sherlock sans deerstalker plus bare-knuckle brutality. This isn't the Holmes of your childhood. This isn't even a Holmes movie. This is a Robert Downey Jr movie. And it's quite a lot of fun.

But if you missed the video stream (there were a few technical issues - it seems Downey Jr. has fitted some kind of lead-coated anti-stalking device), then never fear, check out the best bits below. Yes, you can still enjoy Ritchie's colourful vocals and Jude Law's spotty scarf; Leicester Square never had it so good. Except for when Guy Ritchie went inside.

Read on for the full video (and more pretty pictures), or check out the rather fun trailers over here. We'll give you our official review shortly. 

Excited about Holmes yet? I still am, despite my... issues with Guy Ritchie. But how's this for excitement: a live stream from the red carpet of the Sherlock Holmes premiere tonight. Can't make it to Leicester Square? Don't have the guts (or bail release) to stalk Robert Downey Jr. all the way down the carpet? Now you can do it from your own living room - isn't technology wonderful?

The video feed kicks off here at 5.50pm precisely, and then goes on until the last of the stars have disappeared inside the cinema (at about 7.30pm). So if you want your Jude Law fix, or even feel like throwing things at Guy Ritchie, come back here around 6 o'clock and go wild.

Keep reading for the full-on live coverage. Or, if you're hanging around waiting, head here for the trailer or check out the rather impressive (nay, revolutionary) interactive sleuthing game over at www.221b.sh.

Yes, it's directed by Guy Ritchie, but we all know we're secretly looking forward to Sherlock Holmes. Reinventing the deerstalker detective in a London full of explosions, black magic and Robert Downey Jr., there's honestly no way it could look any more fun. Throw in Jude Law as Watson and Rachel McAdams as someone who occasionally takes her clothes off and it's a dead cert for silly entertainment. But now we have a new trailer to get us all excited once more.

You may have seen it on MTV the other day. Well, now it's here - clearly the better place to watch it. And, to go with the tasty new teaeser, Warner Bros. have even released 221B, an online adventure game. You can check that out over here. But before you do, head to our videos section for the third Holmes trailer, or read on for the sexy new poster.

Yes, we're getting a second Sherlock. This, before the first one's even come out yet. Warner Bros. must be banking on Guy Ritchie's re-conception of Conan Doyle's detective being a box office hit - quite likely given the presence of Jude Law and Robert Downey Jr. But the sequel's got extra star factor to it now, because according to The Hollywood Reporter, a certain someone just might be in it.

You may remember a while back those rumours of Brad Pitt appearing in Sherlock Holmes as Moriarty (see "Brad Pitt Is Not Moriarty"). Now, it seems, he IS Moriarty, but in Downey Jr.'s next outing. Of course, there are now rumours that he does turn up this Christmas, albeit in shadowy, non-Brad Pitt form.

Either way, Kieran and Michele Mulroney are making a pass at a script for the next one - no doubt destined for re-writing by the team of writers brought in for Holmes No. 1. Just don't expect it to be anything like Basil Rathbone's stuff. If anything, the sequel will be even stranger. For the moment, we can but drool over the trailer. Boxing Day can't come soon enough...