Charles Augustus Magnussen is the new antagonist in the BBC hit drama series Sherlock and Lars Mikkelsen will be playing him, the "worst man in London."

Source: Twitter

Sherlock's producer Sue Vertue tweeted on Monday: "Sherlock's new nemesis - introducing Lars Mikkelsen as Charles Augustus Magnussen." and posted the above photograph.

According to some fan blogs, the character of Charles Augustus Magnussen may have been inspired by Charles Augustus Milverton. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle originally introduced him in 'The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton.' Sherlock of the short-story equates him to serpents in a Zoo. He says to Watson, "Do you feel a creeping, shrinking sensation, Watson when you stand before serpents in a Zoo, and see the slithery, gliding, venomous creatures, with their deadly eyes and wicked, flattened faces? Well, that's how Milverton impresses me."

"I've had to do with fifty murderers in my career, but the worst of them never gave me the repulsion which I've for this fellow."

He is likely to be more sinister than Professor Moriarty who met his end in Season 2 final episode 'The Reichenbach Fall' based on Sir Doyle's short story, 'The Final Problem'.

The three stories of Sherlock 3 are: 'The Empty Hearse', written by Mark Gatiss and directed by Jeremy Lovering; 'The Sign of Three', written by Steve Thompson and directed by Colm McCarthy; and 'His Last Vow', written by Steven Moffat and directed by Nick Hurran.

The first episode of Season 3 'Empty Hearse' is loosely based on the original story 'The Adventure of the Empty House 'and rightly so. In Sir Doyle's 'The Adventure of the Empty House', Sherlock returns from the abyss of death to solve the murder of Honourable Ronald Adair.

The opening scene of Sherlock 2 final episode, 'The Reichenbach Fall', is of Watson (Martin Freeman) telling his psychiatrist, "My best friend, Sherlock Holmes, is dead." The famous London detective had jumped down from the roof of St Bartholomew's Hospital after Professor Moriarty had killed himself. Watson and others assume that he did not survive the fall and is dead. The closing scene of the episode shows Sherlock (Benedict Cumberbatch), standing in the shadows, watching Watson walk away from his grave.

How did Sherlock survive the fall? In a pre-taped comic-con video, Cumberbatch tried explaining how his character Sherlock faked his death, but curse the signal lost disturbance. It spoiled the spoiler and not much could be heard.

What we can hear clearly, "Here is the ledge of the building (the hand of Cumberbatch) and here is Sherlock (a monkey bunny atop the ledge) ... there is this big helicopter thing ... cup of tea dear ... that is basically how that happened ..." There are plenty of hand movements to analyse, including what looked like a phone call.

Did Sherlock call his big brother Mycroft Holmes? Only he could have arranged for a helicopter and helped him fake his death. In the original short story Sherlock Holmes' knowledge of 'baristu', or the Japanese system of wresting, had come to his rescue.