Lhassa & Mecca
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“amused myself by visiting Lhassa...looked in at Mecca” [FINA] The Great Hiatus, as the interval between "The Final Problem" and "The Empty House" is known, has inspired a great deal of speculation and interpretation, thanks to Sherlock Holmes's brief and tantalizing account of his time away. Edgar Smith took it on in his famous essay (as referenced in Episode 334), but Don Pollock took aim at the fawning acceptance in his own analysis in a 1975 issue of The Baker Street Journal. It's just a Trifle. If you have a question for us, please email us at...
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The Lumber Room
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“lumbering upon its way” [DEVI] Across the Sherlock Holmes stories, we find a few mentions of what seems to be a strange and magical place in English residences: the lumber room. In old country houses and in the city at 221B Baker Street, as well as in descriptions of the mind, the lumber room is a place that deserves a little exploration. And it's just a Trifle. Thanks to Kaj for the suggestion for this episode. If you have a question for us, please email us at [email protected]. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift. ...
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The Location of Baskerville Hall
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“I was able to reach Baskerville Hall” [HOUN] There are a handful of locations in the Sherlock Holmes stories that are regularly sought out by fans. Of course 221B Baker Street is at the top of the list, along with the Reichenbach Falls. For those who venture to the west, Baskerville Hall is always a source of inspiration. But where exactly was it? Scholars have been debating that subject for decades, and in 1979 Howard Brody, BSI ("Anstruther") won the Morley-Montgomery Award for his paper that attempted to settle the matter. It's just a Trifle. If you have a...
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The Stonor Case
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“took to the stage” [TWIS] When faced with four months of an empty theater in a six-month lease in 1910, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle did the only thing he could on a moment's notice: he turned to Sherlock Holmes. The Stonor Case (later renamed The Speckled Band) went into production and is considered part of the group of stories categorized as apocryphal. While the name was the same as the short story, there were departures from the original. This and many tales about this play are all a Trifle. If you have a question for us, please email us at [email protected]. If...
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John H. Watson Never Went to China
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“Well, but China?” [REDH] Our recent episode about real people who inspired characters in the Sherlock Holmes stories spills over into this episode for our monthly Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist-themed episode. Jay Finley Christ wrote a piece in 1949 that wasn't widely published until 1975 (if one can call the audience of Baker Street Miscellanea wide). Prof. Christ takes on John Dickson Carr's biography and other Sherlockians, debunking a myth about the inspiration for Dr. Watson. And it's just a Trifle. If you have a question for us, please email us at...
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The Fabulous Originals
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“There are the originals” [LAST] Sherlockians go to great pains to "play the game," meaning that Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson were real. If we can drop the mask for a moment, we all know they were creations of one Arthur Conan Doyle. We also know that every author is inspired by people, names, and places around them. So too was Conan Doyle when he created certain characters. Who were some of the characters in the Canon who were inspired by real people? It's just a Trifle. If you have a question for us, please email us at [email protected]. If you use...
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St. Saviour's, Near King's Cross
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“entirely mistaken” [CHAS] The Morley-Montgomery Award-winning article we're discussing this month is by the legendary Jack Tracy, author of The Encyclopedia Sherlockiana and founder of Gaslight Publications. "St. Saviour's, Near King's Cross" appeared in Vol. 27, No. 4 of the Baker Street Journal in 1977 and looked specifically at the church where Mary Sutherland was supposed to marry Hosmer Angel. Previous Sherlockian scholars were unaware of some hidden London history that Tracy was able to uncover. And it's just a Trifle. If you have a question for us,...
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The Story of the Lost Special
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“engage a special” [FINA] This marks the fourth episode in our series of The Apocrypha of Sherlock Holmes — stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that are technically not part of the original Canon. "The Story of the Lost Special" was written by Conan Doyle in 1898 about a train that has vanished from the face of the earth, but doesn't explicitly include Sherlock Holmes. How does this then tie into the great detective? Stay tuned, because it's just a Trifle. If you have a question for us, please email us at [email protected]. If you use your inquiry on...
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Playing Tricks with the Law of England
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“play tricks with me and I’ll crush you” [ABBE] Was Sherlock Holmes too lenient with how he handled some of the criminals he defeated? There are a number whom he caught and set free, flouting the law in the process. Inspired by a recent article in The Baker Street Journal, we look at examples in a handful of stories and compare the fates of the accused in each. Did they get what they deserved? It's much more than just a Trifle. If you have a question for us, please email us at [email protected]. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you...
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Untangling the Skein
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“another thread which I have extricated out of the tangled skein” [HOUN] It has long been accepted that the original title of A Study in Scarlet was meant to be A Tangled Skein. While there is no surviving manuscript of the first Sherlock Holmes story, a single page of notes has long served as Sherlock Holmes's "birth certificate." However, Matt Hall discovered a letter in Sydney, Australia that proves otherwise. His research is presented in Vol. 37 No. 2 of The Sherlock Holmes Journal. And it's much more than just a Trifle. If you have a question for us, please email...
info_outline“before my biographer had come to glorify me” [GREE]
Once again, we find ourselves in a "Mr. Sherlock Holmes the theorist"-themed episode, where we look at a piece of old scholarship. This time, we share a chapter from William S. Baring-Gould's groundbreaking biography of Sherlock Holmes.
Chapter V "On Stage and Off in England and America: 1879–1881" finds us in the two years leading up to Holmes and Watson meeting each other, while Holmes was beginning to run low on funds. His decision would mean a remarkable set of experiences ahead. It's just a Trifle.
Links
- Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street: A Life of the World's First Consulting Detective by William S. Baring-Gould (Abebooks)
- Other episodes mentioned:
- All of our social links: https://linktr.ee/ihearofsherlock
- Email us at trifles @ ihearofsherlock.com
Music credits
Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber OrchestraPublisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0