'Sherlock' Season 4 Release Date Confirmed By Steven Moffat And BBC One After Martin Freeman Announces Christmas Special And [SPOILERS] Death Of Mary Morstan [PHOTO]

Yesterday we reported that Martin Freeman had let slip some big spoilers about Season 4 of "Sherlock" including the death of his onscreen wife Mary Morstan, and an upcoming Christmas special. Today Steven Moffat has confirmed these rumors and more. 

Maybe it's because Martin Freeman talked openly about the future of "Sherlock," but whatever the reason BBC One has finally decided to properly confirm that both a fourth season of the show and a one-off special are being developed, with production expected to get underway sometime next year.

"Sherlock" co-creator Steven Moffat, Sherlock Holmes, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, and John Watson played by Martin Freeman will continue their adventures some two years after season 3 was released.

The one-off special will arrive first, before Season 4, which will retain be three 90-minute episodes style. Season 4 picks up the tantalizing story threads left dangling at the conclusion of the season 3 finale, "His Last Vow" 

Moffat merely teased that "we're reasonably confident that the very next thing to happen to Sherlock and John, is the very last thing you'd expect," with his comment in the official BBC press release. 

The other Sherlock co-creator Mark Gatiss, who also plays Mycroft on the show, provided us with a similarly vague statement, saying, "Series Four! At Last! It's always special to return to Sherlock, but this time it's even more special as we're doing... a Special! Not only That, we'll be shooting three more episodes which will take Sherlock and John Watson into deeper and darker water than ever before. The whole Sherlock tema are terrifically excited to return for four new adventures. The Game is on-again!"

The "Sherlock" one-off special will film in early 2015, possibly even January; production on season 4 will commence sometime in the months thereafter