Back in November, British broadcaster BBC One released a photo of “Sherlock” stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman donning Victorian garb that set off speculations of whether the show would explore time travel or simply be playing dress-up.

Now the show’s co-creator, Steven Moffat, confirmed an upcoming special will travel back to Victorian England. Moffat told Entertainment Weekly that the special is independent from the show’s highly anticipated fourth season, which will likely appear in early 2016.

“The special is its own thing,” Moffat said on Monday. “We wouldn’t have done the story we’re doing, and the way we’re doing it, if we didn’t have this special. It’s not part of the run of three episodes. So we had this to do it — as we could hardly conceal — it’s Victorian.”

Moffat alluded to the high stakes involved with the show’s fourth season at the 2014 Emmy Awards.

“We have a plan … we practically reduced our cast to tears by telling them about the plan,” he said to journalists in the press room when he went backstage after accepting the award for writing for a miniseries.

BBC and PBS’ “Masterpiece” have yet to release an air date for the special.