Benedict Cumberbatch Pens Moving Letter to Family of Late 14-Year-Old Sherlock Fan: "God Rest Her Soul"

Actor was unable to attend her funeral, which took place a day after the 2015 Oscars

By Corinne Heller Feb 26, 2015 8:02 PMTags
Benedict Cumberbatch, Filming SherlockSimon James/GC Images

While Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch was unable to attend the funeral of 14-year-old Eve Shepherd, a huge fan of the BBC show, he still honored her in front of her loved ones before she was laid to rest.

The British actor sent her parents, Mark and Jane, a letter of condolence. It was read at the memorial service at a church in England tthis week, the U.K. newspaper The Daily Mail reported.

"I send my deepest sympathies to Eve's family," the outlets quoted the letter as saying. "To lose someone so young who fought for her health all her life must be beyond endurance. I hope they can take solace from the fact that she was clearly much loved and her support of our show is hugely appreciated and shall be remembered. I wish I could be there but sadly am filming the show she loved. God rest her soul. With all my love and sympathies, Benedict xxx."

"Eve would find this funny as she was a big TV and film fan," her father told the newspaper, regarding Cumberbatch's gesture. "She would be giggling her head off at the thought she was in the newspaper. But she would be so happy about the letter from Benedict—she was a huge fan."

The funeral took place on Monday, according to the U.K. newspaper The Warrington Guardian newspaper. A day beforehand, Cumberbatch was in Los Angeles. He attended the 2015 Oscars, in which he was nominated for his role as Alan Turing in the World War II-era film The Imitation Game, along with his pregnant wife Sophie Hunter.

Eve died on Feb. 1 at her home in England after suffering from breathing problems, The Daily Mail reported, adding that the teen had undergone more than 200 operations throughout her life and had a tracheostomy when she was a baby. The breathing tube was removed just last year.

"She was individual," her mother told The Warrington Guardian "She did Eve's things and it didn't matter what you said to her she would still do Eve's things. "She knew her own mind and it's a shame more kids don't feel strong enough and comfortable enough to be like Eve in that way."

The outlet featured Eve's story on the front page, as seen in a tweet posted by her friend and retweeted by her mother.

Hundreds of people attended Eve's memorial service, which incorporated other Sherlock elements, according to The Daily Mail. Many mourners wore deerstalkers, the type of hat the traditional Sherlock Holmes character wears in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic stories and which Cumberbatch sports in new episodes of Sherlock, as seen in on-set photos released earlier this year.

Also, as mourners left the funeral, the show's theme song was played.

Eve's family also received special Sherlock-themed memorial flowers.

According to The Warrington Guardian, a memorial rugby match honoring Eve is planned for March 1, to benefit Great Ormond Street Hospital's Peter Pan Ward, Alder Hey Children's Hospital's bereavement care center and the group Warrington Animal Welfare, all of which are close to the family's heart.

Her mother shared on her Twitter page an ad for the match, which features her daughter and Cumberbatch.