The following is a list of actors who have played Dr. Watson in various media.
| Name | Title | Date | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| F. H. Oliver | The Sign of the Four[1] | 1922 | Radio (WGY) |
| Leigh Lovell | The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes[2] | 1930–1935 | Radio (NBC Blue Network) |
| Reginald Mason | Lux Radio Theatre – "Sherlock Holmes"[3] | 1935 | Radio adaptation of the play (NBC) |
| Harry West | The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | 1936 | Radio (Mutual, NBC) |
| Ray Collins | The Mercury Theatre on the Air – "Sherlock Holmes" | 1938 | Radio adaptation of the play (CBS) |
| Nigel Bruce | The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | 1940–1947 | Radio (Mutual, ABC) |
| Carleton Hobbs | The Boscombe Valley Mystery[4] | 1943 | BBC Home Service |
| Ralph Truman | My Dear Watson | 1943 | |
| Finlay Currie | The Adventure of the Speckled Band (two productions)[5] | 1945, 1948 | |
| Norman Shelley | Silver Blaze | 1945 | |
| Sherlock Holmes[6] | 1952–1969 | Radio series (BBC) | |
| Alfred Shirley | The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | 1947–1948 | Radio (Mutual) |
| Ian Martin | 1948 | ||
| Wendell Holmes | 1948–1949 | ||
| Eric Snowden | 1949–1950 | Radio (ABC) | |
| Ralph Richardson | The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | 1954 | Radio series (BBC Light Programme) |
| Bryan Coleman | The Sign of Four[7] | 1959 | BBC Light Programme |
| Kenneth Baker | Sherlock Holmes | 1967 | South African Broadcasting Corporation |
| Nigel Stock | Sherlock Holmes[8] | 1970–1971 | LP record series |
| Dinsdale Landon | A Study in Scarlet[9] | 1974 | BBC Radio 4 |
| Lloyd Battista | CBS Radio Mystery Theater – "The Hound of the Baskervilles"[10] | 1977 | Radio (CBS) |
| Court Benson | CBS Radio Mystery Theater | 1977–1981 | |
| David Buck | Sherlock Holmes[11] | 1978 | Radio series (BBC Radio 4) |
| Kerry Jordan | The Stories of Sherlock Holmes | 1979–1985 | Radio series (Springbok Radio) |
| Timothy West | Sherlock Holmes vs. Dracula[12] | 1981 | BBC radio dramatisation of the novel |
| Bernard Grant | CBS Radio Mystery Theater – "The Naval Treaty" | 1982 | Radio (CBS) |
| William Griffis | CBS Radio Mystery Theater – "The Reigate Mystery" | 1982 | |
| Andrew Hilton | The Mystery of the Reluctant Storyteller and The Valley of Fear[13] | 1986 | BBC Radio 4 |
| Crawford Logan | The Hound of the Baskervilles[14] | 1988 | |
| Michael Williams | BBC Radio Sherlock Holmes (the entire canon) | 1989–1998 | |
| Ian Hogg | The Seven-Per-Cent Solution | 1993 | BBC radio dramatisation of the novel |
| Nicky Henson | The Unopened Casebook of Sherlock Holmes[15] | 1993 | Radio series (BBC Radio 5) |
| Lawrence Albert | The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (American series) | 1998–present | Radio series (Imagination Theatre) |
| The Classic Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (the entire canon) | 2005–2016 | ||
| Chris Emmett | The Newly Discovered Casebook of Sherlock Holmes | 1999 | BBC Radio 2 |
| Andrew Sachs | The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (British series) | 2002–2010 | BBC Radio 4 |
| Richard Earl | Sherlock Holmes[16] | 2010–2022 | Audio dramas (Big Finish Productions) |
| Geoffrey Arend | The Hound of the Baskervilles[17] | 2014 | Audio drama (L.A. Theatre Works) |
| Stephen Critchlow | Mrs Hudson's Radio Show[18] | 2018 | BBC Radio 4 |
| Kobna Holdbrook-Smith | Sherlock Holmes: The Voice of Treason[19] | 2020 | Audio drama (Audible Original) |
| Stephen Fry | The Hound of the Baskervilles[20] | 2021 | |
| Adam Godley | [21] | 2022 | |
| Sanjeev Bhaskar | The Hound of the Baskervilles: A Concert Drama[22] | 2023 | Radio play (BBC Radio 3) |
| Paul Waggott | Sherlock & Co[23] | 2023-present | Scripted podcast (Goalhanger Podcasts) |
| Name | Title | Date | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seymour Hicks | Under The Clock[24] | 1893 | Stage (Royal Court Theatre) |
| St. John Hamund | Sherlock Holmes[25] | 1894 | Stage (Royalty Theatre, Glasgow) |
| Bruce McRae | Sherlock Holmes | 1899 | Broadway (American) |
| Kenneth Rivington | Sherlock Holmes | 1905 | Stage (British) |
| The Speckled Band | 1921–1922 | ||
| H. Lawrence Leyton | Sherlock Holmes[26] | 1905 | |
| The Speckled Band[27] | 1910 | ||
| Claude King | The Speckled Band[28] | 1910 | |
| R.V. Taylour | The Crown Diamond[29] | 1921 | |
| H. G. Stoker | The Return of Sherlock Holmes | 1923 | |
| Jack Raine | Sherlock Holmes | 1953 | Stage (American) |
| Peter Sallis | Baker Street | 1965 | Musical (American) |
| Tim Pigott-Smith | Sherlock Holmes | 1974 | Stage revival (British) |
| Dennis Cooney | Sherlock Holmes | 1974 | Stage revival (American) |
| Timothy Landfield | The Crucifer of Blood | 1978 | Broadway (American) |
| Denis Lill | The Crucifer of Blood | 1979 | Stage (London) |
| Richard Woods | Sherlock Holmes[30] | 1981 | Stage revival (Williamstown Theater Festival), filmed for TV |
| Jeremy Brett | The Crucifer of Blood | 1981 | Stage (Los Angeles) |
| Edward Woodward | Murder Dear Watson[31] | 1983 | Stage (British) |
| Alan Stanford | The Mask of Moriarty[32] | 1985 | Stage (Dublin) |
| Donal Donnelly | Sherlock's Last Case[33] | 1987 | Stage (Nederlander Theatre) |
| John Nicholson | The Hound of the Baskervilles[34] | 2007 | Stage (West Yorkshire Playhouse) |
| Lucas Hall | [35] | 2015 | Arena Stage in Southwest, Washington, D.C. |
| [36] | 2015 | Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, California | |
| Patrick Robinson | [37] | 2017–2018 | Liverpool Playhouse |
| Joseph Derrington | Sherlock Holmes – The Sign of Four[38] | 2018–2019 | UK theatre tour[39] |
| Roland Kalweit | Sherlock Holmes und der Hund der Baskervilles[40] | 2023–2025 | European theatre tour[41] |
| Name | Title | Date | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| William Podmore | The Three Garridebs[42] | 1937 | Television play for NBC (American) |
| Campbell Singer | The Man with the Twisted Lip[43] | 1951 | Potential series pilot (British) |
| Raymond Francis | We Present Alan Wheatley as Mr. Sherlock Holmes in... | 1951 | Television series (British)[44] |
| Philip King | The Mazarin Stone[45] | 1951 | Television film for BBC (British) |
| Bernard Fox | The Hound of the Baskervilles | 1972 | Television film (American) |
| Edward Fox | Doctor Watson and the Darkwater Hall Mystery | 1974 | Television film (British) |
| Patrick Macnee | Sherlock Holmes in New York | 1976 | Television film (American) |
| Sherlock Holmes and the Leading Lady | 1991 | Television film | |
| Incident at Victoria Falls | 1992 | ||
| Thorley Walters | Silver Blaze | 1977 | Television film (Canadian) |
| Richard Woods | Standing Room Only – Sherlock Holmes[46] | 1981 | Television play for HBO (American) |
| Terence Rigby | The Hound of the Baskervilles | 1982 | Television serial (British) |
| Earle Cross | Sherlock Holmes and the Valley of Fear | 1983 | Animated television films; voice only (Australian) |
| Sherlock Holmes and the Sign of Four | 1983 | ||
| Sherlock Holmes and the Baskerville Curse | 1983 | ||
| Sherlock Holmes and a Study in Scarlet | 1983 | ||
| David Healy | The Sign of Four | 1983 | Television film (British-American) |
| Donald Churchill | The Hound of the Baskervilles | 1983 | |
| John Mills | The Masks of Death | 1984 | Television film (British) |
| John Hillerman | Hands of a Murderer | 1990 | |
| Richard Johnson | The Crucifer of Blood | 1991 | TV film adaptation of the play (American) |
| John Scott-Paget | The Hound of London | 1993 | Television film (Canadian-Luxembourgian) |
| Kenneth Welsh | The Hound of the Baskervilles | 2000 | Television films (Canadian) |
| The Sign of Four | 2001 | ||
| The Royal Scandal | 2001 | ||
| The Case of the Whitechapel Vampire | 2002 | ||
| Ian Hart | The Hound of the Baskervilles | 2002 | Television film (British) |
| Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Silk Stocking | 2004 | ||
| Roger Morlidge | 2002 | Television film (American) | |
| Bill Paterson | Sherlock Holmes and the Baker Street Irregulars | 2007 | BBC television film (British) |
| Gareth David-Lloyd | Sherlock Holmes | 2010 | DTV film (American) |
| John Rhys-Davies | Tom and Jerry Meet Sherlock Holmes | 2010 | Animated DTV film; voice only (American) |
| Name | Title | Date | Type | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victor Moore | Texaco Star Theatre – "Sherlock Holmes in the Mystery of the Sen Sen Murder"[47] | 1949 | TV episode (American) | |
| Melville Cooper | Your Show Time – "The Speckled Band" | 1949 | ||
| Raymond Francis | Sherlock Holmes | 1951 | TV series (British) | |
| Jack Raine | Suspense – "The Adventure of the Black Baronet" | 1953 | TV episode (American) | |
| H. Marion-Crawford | Sherlock Holmes | 1954–1955 | TV series (American-French) | |
| Nigel Stock | Sherlock Holmes | 1965–1968 | TV series (British) | |
| Paul Edwin Roth | Sherlock Holmes | 1967–1968 | TV series (Germany) | |
| Gianni Bonagura | Sherlock Holmes | 1968 | TV series (Italy) | |
| Donald Pickering | Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson | 1979 | TV series (American-Polish) | |
| Vitaly Solomin | The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson | 1979–1986 | TV film series (USSR) | |
| Hubert Rees | The Baker Street Boys | 1983 | TV series (British) | |
| David Burke | Sherlock Holmes | 1984–1985 | ||
| Kōsei Tomita | Sherlock Hound | 1984–1985 | TV animated series (Italian-Japanese) (Japanese version) | |
| Lewis Arquette | 1984–1985 | TV animated series (Italian-Japanese) (English dub) | ||
| Riccardo Garrone | 1984–1985 | TV animated series (Italian-Japanese) (Italian dub) | ||
| Edward Hardwicke | Sherlock Holmes | 1986–1994 | TV series (British) | |
| Patrick Monckton | Alfred Hitchcock Presents – "My Dear Watson" | 1989 | TV episode (American) | |
| Phil Hartman | Saturday Night Live – "Sherlock Holmes' Birthday Party" | 1991 | TV sketch (American) | |
| John Payne | Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century | 1999–2001 | Animated TV series (British-American) | |
| Jim Piddock | – "Trials of the Demon!"[48] | 2009 | Animated TV series (American) | |
| Martin Freeman | Sherlock | 2010–2017 | TV series (British) | |
| Lucy Liu | Elementary | 2012–2019 | TV series (American) | |
| Kyle Mooney | Epic Rap Battles of History – "Batman vs. Sherlock Holmes" | 2012 | Online series episode (American) | |
| Andrei Panin | Sherlock Holmes | 2013 | TV series (Russian) | |
| Wataru Takagi | Sherlock Holmes | 2014–2015 | TV series (Japanese) | |
| Tao Tsuchiya | IQ246: The Cases of a Royal Genius | 2016 | ||
| Shihori Kanjiya | Miss Sherlock | 2018 | ||
| Takanori Iwata | 2019 | |||
| Yuichi Nakamura | 2019–2020 | TV anime series (Japanese) (Japanese version) | ||
| Josh Grelle | 2019–2020 | TV anime series (Japanese) (English dub) | ||
| Yūki Ono | Moriarty the Patriot | 2020–2021 | TV anime series (Japanese) | |
| Ryan Colt Levy | 2021 | TV anime series (English dub) | ||
| Andrey Feskov | Sherlock in Russia | 2020 | TV series (Russian) | |
| Royce Pierreson | The Irregulars | 2021 | TV series (British-American) | |
| Morris Chestnut | Watson | 2025 | TV series (American) |
| Name | Title | Date | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warren Green | 1991 | Consulting Detective series; live-action cutscenes | |
| 1992 | |||
| [51] | 1993 | ||
| Deem Bristow | 1992 | Voice role | |
| Laurie Main | [52] | 1994 | Live-action video clips in the 3DO (1994) release |
| Roger L. Jackson | [53] | 1996 | Voice role; digitized sprites based on a different actor |
| John Bell | 2002 | Sherlock Holmes series; voice role | |
| David Riley | 2004 | ||
| 2007 | |||
| Sherlock Holmes Versus Arsène Lupin | 2007 | ||
| Sherlock Holmes Versus Jack the Ripper | 2009 | ||
| Sherlock Holmes and the Hound of the Baskervilles | 2011 | ||
| The Testament of Sherlock Holmes | 2012 | ||
| Nick Brimble | 2014 | ||
| Andrew Wincott | [54] | 2016 | |
| Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened | 2023 | ||
A small number of actors have played both Holmes and Watson, including Reginald Owen who played Watson in Sherlock Holmes (1932) and Holmes in A Study in Scarlet (1933);[55] [56] Jeremy Brett, who played Watson on stage in the United States prior to adopting the mantle of Holmes on British television;[57] Howard Marion-Crawford, who played Holmes on British radio and Watson on American television; Carleton Hobbs, who played both roles in British radio adaptations;[58] and Patrick Macnee, who played both roles in US television movies.[59]