I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere

"we appeared to be two theatre-goers" [CHAS]  Tim Greer, BSI ("The Ragged Shaw") joins us for this episode in which we explore some of the intricacies and challenges of producing Sherlock Holmes on the stage. For anyone who's been to a major gathering of Sherlockians in the last few years, Tim should be no stranger. From his home base in Memphis to 221B Con and the BSI Weekend, he's been seen in e...

"Has anything escaped me?" [HOUN]  There's a reason Vincent Starrett wrote "Here, though the world explode, these two survive,/ And it is always eighteen ninety-five." Whether it was in the 1940s or today, the world offers a up a variety of stressors and developments that cause one to wish to simply forget about it all for a while. Hence, the concept of escapism. The pastime of Sherlock Holmes is...

" dancing across the paper" [DANC]  The opportunity to see an original Conan Doyle manuscript up close and to transcribe it word for word is a rare one. Which is why Ray Betzner, BSI ("The Agony Column") jumped at the opportunity and buttonholed David Morrill, BSI ("Count Von Kramm") to assist with the editing Dancing to Death, the latest volume in the Baker Street Irregulars Manuscript Series, wh...

"their celebrated colleague" [VALL]    It's 2017 and we're back from the BSI Weekend, with tales of friends, listeners, authors and more. Things we learned included Bonnie MacBird's next Sherlock Holmes novel that involves whisky; a future edition of a Sherlock Holmes companion from Cambridge University Press; the Society of Illustrators has a wonderful cafe, where we held the annual meeting of th...

"Yes, Mr. Holmes, I teach music." [SOLI]    It's our final show of 2016, we welcome Karen Wilson to the program to discuss a variety of musical associations of hers with Sherlock Holmes. From teaching to composing to performing, she does it all, and incorporates that into her Sherlockian pursuits.   We're treated to one of the best toasts of the year, "Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street," performed f...

"It is for the convenience of these that the Diogenes Club was started" [GREE]  Sherlockian societies are literally everywhere. Go ahead and check  — we'll wait. And just as there are many things that make them unique, there are just as many that bind them together. Whether it's traditions, geography, frequency, or program style, Sherlock Holmes is at the center of it all. And while Sherlock and h...

"Holmes crouched down behind the screen" [HOUN]   Every four years, the Baker Street Irregulars host a conference of sorts. We shared with you some of our impressions from the Chautauqua conference in Episode 104 .   This time, we step back to the conference immediately preceding it - Behind the Canonical Screen , which took place in Los Angeles at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television i...

"If a man has a hobby, he follows it up" [ILLU]  One of the perennially favorite sets of episodes is the Sherlockian 101 series we did (originally Episode 4 and Episode 5). Many of our longtime listeners may have heard these, but some may not have listened to them in a while. And we recognize that we may have new listeners who may not have gone through our extensive back catalog. Therefore, we dec...

"Excellent, Watson! You scintillate today." [ILLU]  In 2017, we'll celebrate the 10th anniversary of A Scintillation of Scions , appropriately called "a family reunion for Sherlockians." In this episode, we're fortunate to be able to speak with the founder of the event, Jacquelynn Morris, BSI ("The Lion's Mane"). From an AOL discussion board to membership in one of Maryland's finest Sherlockian so...

"now bright, now faint, as the burning poison waxed or waned" [TWIS] After nearly 130 years in print, it seems like the phenomenon of Sherlock Holmes may have peaked. And yet, it's likely that every generation may have thought that - including the one in which Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was still writing the original stories.   We've often said that every generation has its Sherlock Holmes, and when w...

"The detectives and I must have echoed it" [VALL]    Laurie R. King, BSI ("The Red Circle") and Leslie S. Klinger, BSI ("The Abbey Grange") are no strangers to the mystery genre. Laurie is probably best known for her Mary Russell-Sherlock Holmes stories, and Les has annotated the Sherlock Holmes stories, Dracula, Sandman and H.P. Lovecraft.   Together, the two have edited two anthologies of storie...

"I had never heard of the institution" [GREE]    Every four years, the Baker Street Irregulars, the New York-based literary society dedicated to studying Sherlock Holmes, arranges an excursion somewhere in the United States. These events happen outside of the usual BSI Weekend, and like the weekend itself, are open to all interested Sherlockians.   The first in 2004 took the group to Salt Lake Cit...

"they were said to be a most united couple" [DANC] You might call them the first couple of the Baker Street Irregulars. Albert ("Inspector Bradstreet") and Julia ("Mrs. Turner") Rosenblatt have graced the Sherlockian scenes as a couple since the early 1970s. We had a chance to visit them at their home in New York, where we heard about a little girl named Margie and an unrelated trip to Meiringen w...

"In summer it is a favourite resort" [VALL]    How often do you think of hot summer weather when you read the Sherlock Holmes stories? According to our calculations, it should be about 25%. But it doesn't seem that way, does it? It turns out that 16 of of the 60 stories took place in the summer months. For those of you keeping track at home, they are (according to William S. Baring-Gould):  "The B...

"the professional enthusiasm which carried my companion" [SIGN]    When your interview guest says that she was hooked on Sherlock Holmes based on the line "I confess that I covet your skull," you know it's going to be a fun and unusual discussion. Even more fun is the fact that Rebecca Romney is an extraordinarily well read and well informed Sherlockian, partially owing to the fact that she is als...

"I am one of a hundred" [ILLU]  Well, we managed to do it. And it only took us nine years, an 18-month hiatus, one lost episode and thousands of fans.   That's right, it's our 100th episode.   We asked you what you wanted to hear for the centenary of the first podcast for Sherlock Holmes devotees, and time and again, we heard from you, telling us to do a retrospective - a look back at our favorite...

"Billy had appeared in answer to a ring." [MAZA]                It's a rare thing to find a Sherlockian legend these days, but Chris Redmond certainly qualifies as one. From his investiture in the Baker Street Irregulars at the tender age of 16 to his long association with the Bootmakers of Toronto, he is a respected speaker at all kinds of Sherlockian events. And online, he's probably best known...

"Oh, he has a European fame, has he?" [REDC]  While Sherlock Holmes is firmly rooted in London, the connections to Europe in the Sherlock Holmes stories are many. But have you ever stopped to ponder, as a whole, how mentions of the Continent and various European countries stack up? You might be surprised.   Travel with us as Burt and Scott take a deeper look into some of the European influences th...

"After an excellent voyage the Hotspur landed us at Sydney" [GLOR]       Australian Sherlockians are some of the most amazing people. We had the opportunity to put our theory to the test not once, but twice. And the most recent occasion was in April 2016 on a visit to Sydney.   There we met with some wonderful and fun Sherlockians: Bill Barnes, BSI, Roseane McNamara, BSI, Kerry Murphy, Christopher...

"See how beautifully the spring works" [STUD]   Spring is here! Suh-per-ing is here! Life is skittles and life is beer... You may not have realized this, but more than a quarter of the Sherlock Holmes stories occurred in the spring. We took the opportunity to call out a few of them an delve into why the season worked as both a setting for the stories and as tool to juxtapose Holmes and Watson.   O...

"It is a curious collection." [MUSG]  You've probably heard us extolling the virtues of A Curious Collection of Dates: Sherlock Holmes Through the Year on previous shows. We're big fans of this book. But after this episode, you'll understand why we're also fans of the authors.   Leah Guinn and Jaime N. Mahoney join us to give us the backstory on what it was like to develop the concept and bring th...

"absolute nonsense" [VALL]      This episode is a little different. As you know, we alternate between interview shows and Burt and Scott discussing whatever comes to mind. In this case, we had a number of news-related items to stitch together, but we had help in doing so. This was something of a chowder, a goulash, a salmagundi, a boullabaise, a melange of content.   First, Bob Katz, BSI ("Dr. Ans...

"He has nerve and he has knowledge." [SPEC]   If you're a regular listener of our show, you may remember that in Episode 76: Out of the Abyss , we chatted with Steve Rothman, BSI ("The Valley of Fear"), Bob Katz, BSI ("Dr. Ainstree") and Andy Solberg, BSI ("Professor Coram") about the BSI Manuscript Series entry about "The Empty House." During that conversation, Bob and Andy excitedly told us abou...

"dreaming of the bright green fields" [CROO]   Mid March means it's time for the wearing of the green, as St. Patrick's Day approaches. Accordingly, we grab our shillelaghs and affect a brogue as we discuss some of the Irish connections in the Sherlock Holmes stories.   While there are many Irish references, both subtle and overt, we concentrate primarily on two of the stories where the Irish conn...

"it is a likely ruse" [ENGR]     February is a shorter month, so the latest episode of I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere comes to you a day earlier.   We're joined by Maria Konnikova, whom you may remember as the author of Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes . She first appeared on I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere Episode 54  to discuss that very book. Maria is a contributing writer for The New...