“I sent down to Stamford's for the ordinance map” [HOUN] In a number of instances in the Sherlock Holmes stories, we find ourselves guided by maps. Not only as critical elements of the plot, but also as visual aids to readers. In which stories do we find maps? And what about those that required floorplans to be sketched out as well? It's just a Tri…

“he is a remarkable linguist” [GREE] Sherlock Holmes has been translated into scores of languages all around the world (just ask Don Hobbs). But what languages was he fluent in or have passing familiarity with? This is the question Dean W. Dickensheet tackles in Vol. 10 No. 3 of The Baker Street Journal in his article "Sherlock Holmes - Linguist." …

“we turned our faces westward” [SIXN] While Sherlock Holmes is a perennial British subject, his influence in and by America cannot be denied. Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes were admirers of the United States, and A West Wind, a recent BSI Press book, delves into that relationship. Co-editors Ray Betzner, BSI ("The Agony Column") and Tom Horrocks, …

“we turned our faces westward” [SIXN] While Sherlock Holmes is a perennial British subject, his influence in and by America cannot be denied. Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes were admirers of the United States, and A West Wind, a recent BSI Press book, delves into that relationship. Co-editors Ray Betzner, BSI ("The Agony Column") and Tom Horrocks, …

“seventeen years of age” [SIGN] Mycroft Holmes spoke for all of us in "The Greek Interpreter" when he greeted Dr. Watson with the fateful line: “I hear of Sherlock everywhere since you became his chronicler.” And yes, in our minds, we'll always hear that line in the voice of the inimitable Charles Gray in the Granada series — a sound clip that serv…

“We have three years of the past to discuss” [EMPT] Once again, we pack our Gladstone bags and prepare for an episode where we travel. This time, we head to Sussex Downs and then across the Atlantic to New York in some of the early years of Sherlock Holmes's retirement. What brings us there is from the fertile imagination of Les Klinger, who posits…

“his age, and an affliction” [STOC] The panoply of elderly individuals in the Sherlock Holmes stories is impressive: Mr. Frankland, the old crank in The Hound of the Baskervilles, the miserly Josiah Amberley in "The Retired Colourman," Old Mr. Farquhar, the previous owner of Watson's practice. But there were many others, some of whom go almost unno…

“do but get into the clutches” [BOSC] We've held off a bit on the traditional interview with the editor of the BSI Manuscript Series this season — not for any lack of interest, but simply for scheduling reasons — but we hope it's worth the wait. Steve Doyle, BSI ("The Western Morning News") is the editor of Clutches of a Fiend, the BSI Manuscript e…

“do but get into the clutches” [BOSC] We've held off a bit on the traditional interview with the editor of the BSI Manuscript Series this season — not for any lack of interest, but simply for scheduling reasons — but we hope it's worth the wait. Steve Doyle, BSI ("The Western Morning News") is the editor of Clutches of a Fiend, the BSI Manuscript e…

“the flooring was also thoroughly examined” [SPEC] Cocoanut matting, bearskin rug, carpets — there are a number of notable floor coverings mentioned in the Sherlock Holmes stories. But flooring itself is less notable. Case in point: linoleum, which appears as a passing mention in just three stories, was a popular alternative at the time. What do we…

“Vast sections of it have been cleared” [BLAC] When you're really down in the details about something — something trifling, perhaps — it's difficult to see the forest for the trees, as the saying goes. Well, we've discussed trees in two previous episodes, so we thought it was time to look at the forests. There were scant mentions of forests in the …

“I wanted to speak with Mr. Smith” [SIGN] This is the third in our series on Legends of the Baker Street Journal; we've previously explored publisher Ben Abramson (Episode 269) and BSI founder Christopher Morley (Episode 272). This time, we'll be looking at wordsmith and able administrator, Edgar W. Smith. It was Smith who deftly managed the operat…

“I wanted to speak with Mr. Smith” [SIGN] This is the third in our series on Legends of the Baker Street Journal; we've previously explored publisher Ben Abramson (Episode 269) and BSI founder Christopher Morley (Episode 272). This time, we'll be looking at wordsmith and able administrator, Edgar W. Smith. It was Smith who deftly managed the operat…

“at Maiwand without losing my nerve” [STUD] Maiwand: Saving the Guns by Richard Caton Woodville, 1883 (Wikimedia Commons) It is generally accepted that A Study in Scarlet, when Dr. Watson first met Sherlock Holmes, took place in 1881. Watson was just back from the war in Afghanistan, where he had been wounded at the Battle of Maiwand. But in 1940, …

“Stop at a telegraph-office, cabby!” [SIGN] Cabbies are everywhere in London – indeed, so common in some cases that they're simply overlooked (we see you, Jefferson Hope!). Could Sherlock Holmes have passed himself off as a cabby? There are certainly points in his career when it would have made sense. And a paper given at a Sherlock Holmes society …

“very curious phraseology” [WIST] Here's an interesting little subject that ought to intrigue many Sherlock Holmes fans: words. We are a literate bunch, and when we get to learn more about words — especially words with which we're unfamiliar — that makes us happy. This topic was suggested by listener Jennifer Cassasanto, who was curious about some …

“That was the curious incident” [SILV] From time to time, we see analysis and debate about whether Sherlock Holmes was autistic, had Asperger Syndrome, or is in some other way on the spectrum. As neurodiversity becomes more understood and accepted in the 21st century, it seems natural to explore this not only with Holmes, but with other characters …

“That was the curious incident” [SILV] From time to time, we see analysis and debate about whether Sherlock Holmes was autistic, had Asperger Syndrome, or is in some other way on the spectrum. As neurodiversity becomes more understood and accepted in the 21st century, it seems natural to explore this not only with Holmes, but with other characters …

“kept as a secret among them” [DEVI] When Dr. Leon Sterndale said there was only one known specimen of radix pedis dioaboli – devil's foot root – in a laboratory in Buda, it was clear that it was a poison unknown to science. Just what was it that was "used as an ordeal poison by the medicine-men in certain districts of West Africa"? Dr. Robert Enni…

“His collaboration may be very necessary” [ILLU] There's a curious phrase in the beginning of A Study in Scarlet that requires a little more consideration. Do you know what it is? John Ball, Jr. did. And his theory about what that phrase signified is an intelligent and plausible one, lifted from a 1954 issue of The Baker Street Journal and The Bake…

“I am one of the hounds” [STUD] The golden age of Hollywood brought us stars like William Powell and Myrna Loy, and of course Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce. In Elizabeth Crowens' new novel Hounds of the Hollywood Baskervilles, we find them (and Dashiell Hammett) intervowen in a story that begins with the disappearance of Asta from The Thin Man mov…

“I am one of the hounds” [STUD] The golden age of Hollywood brought us stars like William Powell and Myrna Loy, and of course Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce. In Elizabeth Crowens' new novel Hounds of the Hollywood Baskervilles, we find them (and Dashiell Hammett) intervowen in a story that begins with the disappearance of Asta from The Thin Man mov…

“we shall certainly have to go to Norwood” [SIGN] The latest in our travel series takes us to Norwood. In particular, the Norwood in The Sign of Four. Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson, and Mary Morstan take a cab to a seedier part of London, and then a four-wheeler south to Norwood. How long would it have taken them? And what else might we find in this …

“consult me over that Manor House case” [GREE] In addition to fascinating cases and clients, the Sherlock Holmes stories saw some wonderful house names. How did some of them get their names? We look at the history of house names, call out the story names that were also house names, and mention a few of our favorite lesser-known country houses in th…

“the affair which you have commemmorated” [MUSG] One of the most influential adaptations of Sherlock Holmes in the last half century is inarguably the Granada/ITV series starring Jeremy Brett. And 2024 marks the 40th anniversary of the program's first airing. Who better to lead a celebration of this iconic show and all who were associated with it, …

“one of biscuits” [GLOR] It's not often we find ourselves with a Muppets crossover, but after stumbling across a few trifling references in the Sherlock Holmes stories, we began to think about the Cookie Monster in Baker Street. Of course, there were no cookies in Baker Street. Only biscuits. Where might we find mentions of biscuits in the Canon? A…

“the weaver by his tooth or the compositor by his thumb” [COPP] On the third week of every month, we look at a piece of Sherlockian scholarship in a series we call "Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist." In this episode, the article "The Effect of Trades on the Body" by Remsen Ten Eyck Schenck from Vol. 3, No. 1 of The Baker Street Journal in 1953 serv…