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...
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£100
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“put £100 down in front of him” [BLUE] Humans are suckers for round numbers. And 100 seems like a perfectly reasonable one to settle on. It's the first three-digit number (in Arabic numbers, that is; Romans were happy to hit a C note). When it comes to £100 in the Sherlock Holmes stories, it's a figure often associated with some sort of scam — enough to get attention and secure the trust of the mark. Which stories feature £100 and what were the circumstances? It's just a Trifle. If you have a question for us, please email us at [email protected]. If you...
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John H. Watson―Word-Painter
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“I had painted” [TWIS] The Morley-Montgomery Award-winning article we're discussing this month is by H.C. Potter from Vol. 26, No. 2 of The Baker Street Journal. In it, Potter looks at Watson's prosaic way of setting the scene for us. He selects excerpts from a number of stories to prove his case. Was he successful in backing up his claims? It's 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 gift. Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form...
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How Watson Learned the Trick
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“why should anyone play me such a trick?” [CARD] After a brief hiatus, we're back to the third in our series of The Apocrypha of Sherlock Holmes — stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that are technically not part of the original Canon. This is the shortest of all of the Apocrypha and it was created for the British Royal Family in a special edition. "How Watson Learned the Trick" is a lovely addition to the non-Canonical apocrypha. It's literally a Trifle. If you have a question for us, please email us at [email protected]. If you use your inquiry on the...
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A Second Case of Identity: The Second Mrs. Watson
Sherlock Holmes: Trifles
“Is Mrs. Watson in?” [FINA] We all know Watson had more than one wife; the number has been debated over the years. But it's his second wife that seems to be the most intriguing. In this "Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist" episode, we look at David Hammer's article from Baker Street Miscellanea, No. 43. Who was the second Mrs. Watson? It's 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 gift. Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" —...
info_outline“so ardent a bicyclist must be full of energy” [SOLI]
The latest installment in our review of Morley-Montgomery Award-winning articles is by Andrew Jay Peck, BSI ("Inspector Baynes"): "The Solitary Man-Uscript" from Vol. 22, No. 2 of The Baker Street Journal in 1972.
Just who was the Solitary Cyclist? There are two cyclists in the story, and one is a young lady simply trying to get to her train safely; the other is a bearded man with sunglasses hunched over his handlebars. Only one of them can be our cyclist. It's just a Trifle.
Links
- Sherlock Holmes Manuscripts: Census (Best of Sherlock)
- The BSI Press Manuscript Series
- The Morley-Montgomery Award
- The Morley-Montgomery Award series of episodes (Patreon | Substack)
- 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