Sherlock Holmes: Trifles

"much addicted" [TWIS]    This month's Masters Class brings us back to a Morley-Montgomery Award-winning article from The Baker Street Journal.   Susan Rice wrote "Watson's Hidden Addiction" for Vol. 47, No. 2 (June 1997) of the BSJ, and it concerned a significant flaw in Watson's character. Perhaps "flaw" is not the right word — let's call it a weakness. She even found a syndrome that would explain it. It's just a Trifle.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles285 Thank you to our sponsor, The Baker Street Journal.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

“What's this, Mr. Holmes? Man, it's witchcraft!” [VALL] Continuing on our supernatural theme, we land on witchcraft. And not just any witchcraft, either. This was a spell cast at Baker Street.   Our monthly "Mr. Sherlock Holmes the theorist" theme lands on Frank Allen's "Witchcraft in Baker Street" from the anthology Beyond Baker Street, and it looks at how some of the people we meet in "Charles Augustus Milverton" were bothered, bewitched, and bewildered. It's just a Trifle.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles284 Thank you to our sponsor, The Baker Street Journal.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

"some hocus-pocus" [SIGN]   The last time we were together, we examined Sherlock Holmes's Tours de Force (Episode 282), in which we discussed a number of ways he wowed people with his unique skills. As we look closer, there are instances when people accuse him of practicing magic, sorcery, or wizardry. What are those examples, and what might have happened to Sherlock Holmes, had he lived in a different era? It's just a Trifle.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles283 Thank you to our sponsor, The Baker Street Journal.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

“my poor little reputation, such as it is, will suffer shipwreck if I am so candid” [REDH]  One of the greatest features of the Sherlock Holmes stories is seeing the master ply his trade. That is, watching Holmes when he dazzles Watson (and us!) with his brilliance.   In the first two novels plus The Adventures and The Memoirs, we have some delicious examples of Holmes at his finest. It is just a Trifle.   And be sure to tune in to hear if you, Patreon supporter, won some back issues of the Baker Street Journal. We hold this drawing exclusively for our supporters every month.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles282 Thank you to our sponsor, The BSI Press.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

"a remarkable cow" [PRIO] The third week of the month means it's time for Master's Class: a look at an exemplary piece of Sherlockian scholarship from over the years.    In this episode, we turn to an award-winning article in The Baker Street Journal. S. Tupper Bigelow pondered the patterns of hoof-marks as laid out in various editions of the Canon, and won the Morley-Montgomery Award in 1962 for it. It's just a Trifle.     Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles281 Thank you to our sponsor, The Baker Street Journal.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

"A touch! A distinct touch!" [VALL] Every author owes something to Shakespeare. His inventiveness with language has withstood the test of time, and many of the phrases he originated or popularized are still in use today. We find Shakespeare's words dotted throughout the Sherlock Holmes stories, well beyond the usual quotes. A number of Shakespearean phrases are allusions in the Canon. It's just a Trifle. Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles280 Thank you to our sponsor, The Baker Street Journal.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

“As to your dates, that is the biggest mystification of all.” [CREE]  This is another instance of the new product we're calling "I Can't Believe We Didn't Talk About This Already."   An early instance of Sherlockian scholarship and commentary, in 1934 Dorothy L. Sayers wrote "The Dates in the Red-Headed League," picking up where H.W. Bell's 1932 Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson: The Chronology of Their Adventures left off.   It's a fine example of using data at hand and being creative, and it's part of our series covering old Sherlockian scholarship. It's just a Trifle.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles279 Thank you to our sponsor, the BSI Press.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

“Drive like the devil” [SCAN]  Call this the case of the overlooked fact. And one that was staring us in the face, too. It concerns the marriage of Irene Adler and Godfrey Norton in "A Scandal in Bohemia."   A listener wrote in and asked us just why Irene Adler had to get married in such a rush. We did a little digging, found some material to discuss, and put our own thoughts into it. It's just a Trifle.   We're holding the monthly drawing for our Patreon supporters in this episode. Are you the winner? You'll have to tune in to find out. Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles278 Thank you to our sponsor, The BSI Press.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

“There’s not a tree in the park” [EMPT]  The third week of the month means it's time for Master's Class: a look at an exemplary piece of Sherlockian scholarship from over the years.    In this episode, we look at Nicholas Utechin's masterful piece from the 1972 Baker Street Journal in which he deduced exactly where Colonel Moran was when he shot the Hon. Ronald Adair in "The Empty House." Or was it Moran at all? It's just a Trifle.   Don't forget: all of our Patreon supporters are eligible for our monthly and quarterly drawings.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles277 Thank you to our sponsor, The Baker Street Journal.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

“Holmes turned to his desk and, unlocking it, drew out a small case-book” [SPEC]  The first week of the month means it's a "Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist"-themed episode, featuring an old piece of scholarship that investigates some trifling issue.   In this episode, we look at an early piece that Martin Dakin wrote for The Sherlock Holmes Journal, questioning the authenticity of some of the stories in The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes. Which made the passing grade? It's just a Trifle.   Don't forget: all of our Patreon supporters are eligible for our monthly and quarterly drawings. Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles275 Thank you to our sponsor, the BSI Press.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

“grazing the top of the oak” [MUSG]   I think that I shall never see... a Sherlock Holmes story as lovely as a tree. However, there are plenty of instances of trees in the Canon that make for interesting observation, if only we stop to look at them through the forest.   Inspired by one of Don Jewell's books, we spend some time investigating the instances of oaks and elms in the stories (far more than just "The Musgrave Ritual," we assure you) and comment on the state of these trees in Victorian times.   Are you the winner of our monthly drawing (for a free back issue of the Baker Street Journal) and our quarterly drawing (for a free annual subscription to the BSJ)? All Patreon supporters are eligible.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles274 Thank you to our sponsor, The Baker Street Journal.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

“a look of grief and despair” [BERY] Let's face it: when clients arrived to consult Sherlock Holmes, they were rarely in positive spirits. Some were confused, others were concerned, and some were just looking for answers.   But some were grief-stricken. Or had cases that ended in grief. It's a sad admission of reality, but there is a strain of grief that starts at the beginning of the stories and continues to the final entry. It's just a Trifle.   Reminder: in the next episode we'll be holding both our monthly drawing (for a free back issue of the Baker Street Journal) and our quarterly drawing (for a free annual subscription to the BSJ). All Patreon supporters are eligible.   Full show notes:  https://ihose.co/trifles273 Thank you to our sponsor, The BSI Press.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

"I want that yellow diamond!” [MAZA] The Masters Class series continues, and this time, Peter Blau instructs us on some finer points of geology and of geopolitical history.  "The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone" featured a yellow diamond, and yet, the Crown Jewels don't contain a diamond of that color. So what was the gem and where did it originate? It's just a Trifle.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles272 Thank you to our sponsor, The Baker Street Journal

“this extraordinary league” [REDH]   For fans of sportsball, the concept of fantasy leagues might seem like a modern invention. A late-20th century pastime of creating the ideal lineup of teammates for competition. But what if you could do that with literary characters?   The first week of the month means it's time to look back at a piece of old scholarship, and in this case we've chosen Henry D. Scott's "Missing Three-Quarter One-Third Discovered" in The Baker Street Journal, Vol. 2, No. 2, (OS) 1947, in which he did just that. It's just a Trifle.   And be sure to listen to the entire episode, as we have a challenge for Trifles listeners.   Special note: we have a bonus clip for our Patreon supporters.     Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles270 Thank you to our sponsor, The BSI Press.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/trifles  

"Would you care to try it?" [SCAN] It's the sixth season of Trifles and we realized we hadn't covered a central yet sensitive topic related to Sherlock Holmes: cocaine.   Thanks to a helpful article from a listener, we decided to delve into the history of medicinal cocaine and Victorian England's attitude toward it. It's just a Trifle.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles269 Thank you to our sponsor, The BSI Press. Please support us on Patreon at https://patreon.com/trifles  

“the source of these outrages is known” [VEIL]   The Masters Class series continues, and this time, we delve into the active mind of Nicholas Utechin, who presents a well-reasoned and well-researched explanation for what happened in one of the unpublished cases.   We find ourselves focusing on the opening paragraph of "The Veiled Lodger," which took place in 1896 but was published in early 1927. Somewhere between those dates lies the truth, and it may be more than just a Trifle.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles268 Thank you to our sponsor, The Baker Street Journal.  

“dropping from branch to branch” [CREE]    The London in which Sherlock Holmes lived gave off its own scents. Whether the roads were paved or covered in mud, they would have played into Holmes's identifications.   And the transportation, whether mechanical or animal, was also part of this potpourri of aromas. The reality is that the city's smells, as pungent as they may have been, were for many people of the time, just a Trifle.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles267 Support Trifles: https://patreon.com/trifles Sponsor: The Baker Street Journal  

“One A, two B, and so on. You will hear soon.” [REDC]   The secret code that Genarro and Emilia Lucca shared for passing messages to each other in "The Red Circle" was straightforward. Or was it?   In 1956, Donald Yates—then a 26 year-old budding Sherlockian—made an observation about the code, the alphabet(s), and the credit that was due to Sherlock Holmes for his invisible but lightning-quick analysis. It's just a Trifle.     ATTENTA: Don't forget: if you're interested in receiving some free back issues of The Baker Street Journal, we hold a drawing every month for our Patreon supporters. To be eligible to participate in this monthly drawing, go to patreon.com/trifles.    Sponsor: The BSI Press Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles266   --