Benedict's parents, a very famous Viking and a nod back to the 'classic' series: Did YOU spot the 'Easter eggs' hidden in last night's Sherlock finale?

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Last night's Sherlock finale might have divided viewers - but the writers managed to dazzle fans with some characteristically intriguing 'Easter eggs'.

Peppered among the more intense Crystal Maze-style scenes of The Final Problem, creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss employed a string of casting gags and subtle references to reward Sherlock devotees and bring the sleuth's unconventional journey full circle.

Among the nuggets which eagle-eyed viewers may have spotted was the appearance of Sherlock's parents, who were played by Benedict Cumberbatch's real mother and father, Wanda Ventham and Timothy Carlton.

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Last night's Sherlock series finale might have divided viewers, but no one can doubt the writers' attention to detail with the programme's characteristic 'Easter eggs'

There was also a flashback to the fateful Reichenbach Falls - where Sherlock had a memorable stand-off with his arch-nemesis Moriarty and tumbled to his death in the original story - while, in the closing scene, a mysterious Viking lying on the floor on 221B Baker Street turned out to be none other than music legend Paul Weller.

The writers also gave a subtle nod to Basil Rathbone - considered by many as the quintessential Sherlock - as they showed the detective and his right-hand man Dr Watson emerging from a building called Rathbone Place.

The poignant scene hinted at how the crime-fighting duo - who have endured death and tragedy in this series - have progressed and developed through their adventures, turning into the heroes viewers always wanted them to be.

A family affair: Sherlock's parents are also Benedict's parents  

In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's stories, Sherlock and Mycroft's mother and father remain a mystery. 

But last night, Mr and Mrs Holmes popped up on screen for the third time in the current adaption, as Mycroft confessed that their daughter Eurus had not died in a house fire and was infact holed up in a high-security prison.

Seeing Sherlock in a domestic setting is a rare sight for fans. But, in a delightful twist, viewers were not only watching Sherlock with his parents, but simultaneously seeing Benedict Cumberbatch with his real mother and father - Wanda Ventham and Timothy Carlton.

Sherlock and Mycroft's parents appeared in last night's episode and are played by Benedict Cumberbatch's real parents, Wanda Ventham and Timothy Carlton (pictured) 

The pair - both professional actors - have appeared twice in the series before. Cumberbatch previously it was emotional acting beside his parents 

The pair - both professional actors - have appeared twice in the series before: once in The Empty Hearse, when they visited his Baker Street flat for tea, and again when the Holmes family gathered together for a cosy Christmas in His Last Vow.

In 2014 , after their first appearance, Cumberbatch said watching his parents make their debut on the show was an emotional experience.

'I nearly cried watching it,' he said. 'I'm so proud of them and I'm so proud of the reaction they got... I think they're perfect casting as my parents!' 

Gatiss - who also plays Mycroft - admitted at the time that it was a bold move to show Sherlock's parents on screen.

'I don't know if Holmes's parents have ever been shown [in a dramatisation] and it felt like the right thing to do in the third season, to be even cheekier,' he said. 'Why not?' 

The striking viking: A more-famous-than usual celebrity cameo 

Anyone who stuck around long enough to read the credits from last night's show will have noticed a very unusual - and famous - cameo appearance.

In a blink-and-you'll-miss-it final montage, Dr Watson is pictured leaning over a viking who is lying on the floor of 221B Baker Street - and who turned out to be Paul Weller.  

The scene shows the Jam star lying unconscious on the floor, while dressed in a bizarre combination of furs and leather. Watson is seen crouching over him, checking his eyes and breathing. 

Celeb spot: Singer Paul Weller made a surprise cameo appearance at the end of the Sherlock finale thanks to his friend Martin Freeman

Eagle-eyed viewers noticed Weller's name come up in the credits. His cameo might have been a favour return after Freeman appeared in the music video for Weller's 2015 single, 'Pick It Up'

Weller is a good friend of Martin Freeman - who plays Dr Watson - and used the actor in the video for his 2015 single, 'Pick It Up'. 

At a preview screening last week director Benjamin Caron, 40, admitted there as a surprise cameo in the scene but did not reveal who it was. 

A BBC source said: 'The viking lying on the floor in the final scenes is in fact Paul Weller.

'He is a good friend of Martin Freeman's. Viewers will never have been able to clock him in the costume as the scene is over so fast.' 

From one Sherlock to another: The appearance of Rathbone Place

In the final scene, Sherlock and Dr Watson are seen running out of a building bearing a plaque with the words Rathbone Place.

The building is not believed to have featured in the show before. But, according to the writers, its appearance is a respectful nod to the great actor Basil Rathbone, who played Sherlock Holmes in 14 films between 1939 and 1946.

For many, Rathbone is the ultimate Sherlock: an older, wiser version of the junkie portrayed by Cumberbatch.

But the inclusion of the reference indicates how the latest Sherlock has evolved, becoming more akin to the character portrayed by Rathbone.

In the final scene, Dr Watson and Sherlock are shown running out of a building which has a plaque with the words Rathbone Place (pictured)

The reference is a clever nod to the great actor Basil Rathbone who played Sherlock Holmes in 14 films between 1939 and 1946

Gatiss said the final scene indicated that Cumberbatch and Freeman have finally become the 'classic' Holmes and Watson that audiences are familiar with.

He also hinted that it could also be a good starting point for another series, with the duo having grown up and turned 'into the heroes we always knew them to be'.

'We have now done the story of how the Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson that we have always known became those men,' he said.

For many, Rathbone (left, with Nigel Bruce as Dr Watson, right) is the ultimate Sherlock - an older, wiser version of the junkie portrayed by Sherlock

'The reason we leave it at Rathbone Place is that, actually if we do come back - and we would love to come back - we could absolutely very easily start it off with a knock on the door and Sherlock saying to John "do you want to come out to play".

'They have become the two heroes that we always knew them to be.' 

Echoing his co-writer's comments, Moffat added: 'That is [Cumberbatch's Sherlock] becoming the Sherlock Holmes of Basil Rathbone and Jeremy Brett. The one we're used to. The wise old man of Baker Street, who's still terrifying, who's still cold, but has a heart that you never doubt.'  

The recurring waterfall of doom 

As Eurus helps Sherlock figure out that she killed his childhood best friend by leaving him to drown in the well, Sherlock experiences flashbacks relating to his fear of water.

During last night's episode, Sherlock had a flashback to his stand-off with Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls (pictured)

Jeremy Brett, who played Sherlock Holmes, and Eric Porter, who played Professor Moriarty, are pictured fighting and falling at the Reichenbach Falls in The Final Problem in 1985 

One of the flashbacks is of the fateful Reichenbach Falls, where Sherlock was seen locked in a stand-off with Moriarty in the Christmas special, The Abominable Bride.

The falls were first mentioned by Doyle in 1893 as the location where Holmes and Moriarty tumbled to their deaths while fighting one another. That story was aptly called 'The Final Problem.' 

But the author received such a backlash for killing him off that, ten years later, Doyle was obliged to bring Holmes and Watson back from the dead.

After his return in The Adventure of the Empty House, three more collections followed: The Return of Sherlock Holmes, His Last Bow and The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes. 

The Reichenbach Falls scene was also included in the 1985 series featuring Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes and Eric Porter as Moriarty. 

Sherlock experiences flashbacks relating to his fear of water - a fear which is explained by the fact that his sister killed his childhood friend by drowning him in a well