Sherlock Holmes: Trifles

"I trust you have no objection to tobacco smoke" [SIGN]    Sherlock Holmes is probably the most famous smoker in the world. But in popular culture, he's always pictured with a pipe. The Canon tells us that he also smoked cigars and cigarettes.   What was the frequency with which he smoked each? Did he tend to favor one form of smoking over another? And was there something that cause him to choose...

"the irregulars are useful sometimes" [RETI]    Homeless children. A gossip columnist. A dog. What do all of these have in common? They're part of the underground network of helpers that Sherlock Holmes cobbled together.    With these individuals and more, Holmes was able to fan out across the great metropolis and gather information that helped him solve his cases. And they're the subject of this...

"before my biographer had come to glorify me." [MUSG]     We've previously covered the tantalizing cases that Sherlock Holmes pulled out of  his tin box . This time, we spend time thinking about some of his other clients before he met Dr. Watson.   There's one we know by name, but the speculation begins fairly early on, as we try to use Holmes's methods to determine who some of his other clients m...

"a wax-coloured model of my old friend" [EMPT]    One of the handiest items found at 221B Baker Street has to be the wax bust of Sherlock Holmes. More than once it played a role as a decoy for Sherlock Holmes.    But when did Holmes commission it and how did it get to Baker Street? And was it even the same bust between the two tales? These questions and more await in the latest edition of Trifles....

"the streaming umbrella" [FIVE]  London is supposed to be a decidedly rainy place. The place where one might expect to find an umbrella or two carried about.   But only a handful of stories of Sherlock Holmes included the mention of umbrellas, galoshes, waterproofs or other rain gear. We investigate the trifling matter of the few umbrellas in the Canon.   Have you left us a  rating  and  review  o...

"the smartest of the Scotland Yarders" [STUD]  When you think of a Scotland Yard inspector in the Sherlock Holmes stories, odds are your thoughts immediately go to Inspector Lestrade. He makes the most appearances in stories and certainly gets the most name recognition, in part thanks to Dennis Hoey's portrayal of the bumbling but capable policeman.   But what about good old Inspector Gregson, who...

"pulling a large tin box behind him" [MUSG]  We're accustomed to referring to Watson's famous tin box, held in the vaults of Cox & Co. Inside were contents that we were not meant to see: heretofore unseen tales of Sherlock Holmes. But Holmes himself was in possession of his own tin box, and boy did it contain a few surprises. We take an inventory and surmise what some of the contents meant. Have y...

"a shocking habit,—destructive" [SIGN]    It's June, which is the month of the Queen's birthday. What a perfect time to look at the "patriotic V.R." that Sherlock Holmes adorned the wall of 221B Baker Street with.   But Sherlock Holmes didn't stop there. He had some other habits that were rather destructive when it came to his rooms. What were they and why did Holmes do that? We discuss these in t...

"I pocket my fee" [STUD]    How much money did Sherlock Holmes make from his clients? And when did he begin making money?    We went back to an early piece of Sherlockian scholarship by Robert Keith Leavitt, first published in Vincent Starrett's  221B: Studies in Sherlock Holmes  for inspiration. We run through Leavitt's assessment, commenting on certain cases and even finding a few points where w...

"Bring me the books" [BLUE]   Sherlock Holmes was a consultant—or more properly, a consulting detective—but he was a consultant, nonetheless. And consultants need clients, who in turn pay the bills.    But have you ever stopped to think about how Holmes went about collecting his fees? We don't know anything about his fees, other than a handful of high profile cases with rewards, and that (he says)...

  "I could easily dispose of the mythical" [SILV]    There are assumptions and myths mentioned throughout the Sherlock Holmes stories. Whether they're believed by clients, Scotland Yard inspectors, or others, they throw our attention elsewhere.    And the Sherlockian world has had its own fair share of myths to deal with over the years as well. Join us as we try to identify and bust a few myths. ...

"the dreadful affair of the Abernetty family" [SIXN]    Among the published cases, there are a handful that can be identified by a simple reference. If we said "a tale for which the world is not yet prepared," you'd say the Giant Rat of Sumatra.  Similarly, if we mention "the depth to which the butter had sunk on a hot day," you'd think of the Abernetty family, as mentioned in the opening of "The...

"put that in your pipe and smoke it, Mr. Busybody Holmes!" [SOLI]    Sherlock Holmes is possibly the most famous smoker in literature. But more than his ubiquitous pipe, his manner of supporting his habit within his rooms at 221B Baker Street was a bit odd, shall we say.   From his placement of cigars and tobacco, to what he did with his pipe remnants, the trimmings around his flat were quite uniq...

" insight into the character of parents" [COPP]    We're coming up on Mother's Day in the United States, and that made us think about parents. We've covered mothers in the Canon discussed alternative parents in previous episodes.    But now let's take a look at the most corrosive parental relationships in the Sherlock Holmes stories. After reading Jenn Eaker's article on "A Case of Identity" in th...

"Does it not strike you as a strange occupation" [RETI]  In the 60 tales that comprise the complete Sherlock Holmes stories, we come across a variety of jobs. Certainly there are the garden variety: cab drivers, butlers, governesses. But what about the more rare?    Sherlock Holmes billed himself as the world's only unofficial consulting detective, but he interacted with people whose jobs were out...

"see what V has to say" [SUSS]     Among the cases that Watson tantalizingly dangles before us, "The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire" offers the  Matilda Briggs  and the giant rat of Sumatra (one of the tales we mentioned in  Episode 55  concerning  Weird Animals ), one of the most famous of the untold adventures.    But it also offers up a handful of others in quick succession, coming from the 'V...

"abstruse chemical analysis" [SIGN]    Along with the deerstalker, Inverness cloak, magnifying glass and curved pipe, Sherlock Holmes is most often associated with chemistry – chemical compounds as well as chemistry equipment.   In this installment of our Inside 221B series, we take a look at Sherlock Holmes's experience with chemistry and other laboratory setups we encounter in the stories.   Hav...

"I was overwhelmed by the honour" [BERY]     Sherlock Holmes was a well-known public figure. But he was also a known and sought-after expert specifically by other well-known public figures and entities.    Which notable public figures sought and received Holmes's services and then bestowed upon him some gift other than cash?  Have you left us a  rating  and  review  on the podcast player of your c...

"I heard you marching about" [SIGN]     From the first cricket match in England in 1877 to the wireless mentioned in 1914, there are numerous things connected to Sherlock Holmes that happened in the month of March.   As the month draws to a close, we reflect on happenings historical and Canonical. Let's see if our bluster lives up to the weather this month is known for. Have you left us a  rating ...

"two rather leprous mendicants" [ILLU]    When Watson glances across his notes and teases us with adventures that he and Sherlock Holmes have experienced, but only gives us a topic with only the barest of details, it makes us wonder exactly what happened.   So is the case in this episode as we talk about the Amateur Mendicant Society and its rather unique meeting location — which in this case coin...

"as we sat over a glass of whisky and soda in Baker Street" [REDH]    Step into the sitting room at 221B Baker Street with us again and look around, as we take in the sights, smells and sounds within that most famous of addresses.    This time, we investigate the physical elements that accompany alcoholic drinks within the walls of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson's abode. Namely: the gasogene and t...

"a line of books of reference beside the mantelpiece" [NOBL]    In Episode 58, we discussed Sherlock Holmes's index books – those collections in which he tracked criminal cases, looked up necessary trivia, etc. But this time, we reach a little deeper and discuss some of the actual named reference books at 221B Baker Street.   Which publications were these and how did they help Holmes and Watson co...

"Now Watson, the fair sex is your department." [SECO]    John Watson knew women; Holmes tells us so. And Watson certainly tells us so, in his admiration of Mary Morstan as well as his description of some of the leading ladies of the Canon. He also told us outright in  The Sign of Four  that he's managed to get around: "In an experience of women which extends over many nations and three separate co...

"never more seen in this world" [THOR]    In "The Problem of Thor Bridge," Watson treats us to a tantalizing look at the possibilities that lie before us as readers: "Somewhere in the vaults of the bank of Cox and Co., at Charing Cross, there is a travelworn and battered tin dispatch-box with my name, John H. Watson, M.D., Late Indian Army, painted upon the lid. It is crammed with papers, nearly a...

"applying his tape to the walls" [STUD]  There's quite a bit we know about the inner sanctum of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson at 221B Baker Street. The cozy sitting room with its fireplace and windows at once beckons us in to look around.   Upon glancing at the walls, though: what do we see? Is it typical of Victorian bachelor decor? Or is there hidden meaning behind any of the wall hangings? We...