Sherlock Holmes: Trifles

“stained with violet” [IDEN]  It should come as no surprise that the most common name of female leads in the Sherlock Holmes stories was Violet. We meet four of them in as many stories: "The Copper Beeches," "The Solitary Cyclist," "The Bruce-Partington Plans," and "The Illustrious Client."   But what do Misses Hunter, Smith, Westbury and de Merville have in common? And how was it that Conan Doyle was influenced to use this particular name? It's just a Trifle.   This topic was suggested by listener Tony. (Thank you, Tony!) If you have a suggestion for a Trifles episode, let us know at trifles @ ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your idea on the air, we'll send you some Sherlockian goodies.   And don't miss our monthly prize: free back issues of The Baker Street Journal. All patrons are eligible for the random drawing. Did you win? Listen to this episode to find out! And become a patron at https://patreon.com/trifles.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles291 The Language of Flowers by Kate Gre

“man in the scientific press capable of criticizing it” [VALL]    Every month, we feature an episode called "Masters Class" that looks at an exemplary piece of Sherlockian scholarship that stands out for its workmanship.   This time, we look at Isaac Asimov's essay "The Dynamics of an Asteroid," published in Baker Street and Beyond. He looks at the prevailing scientific knowledge of the time and ponders just what Moriarty was suggesting in his treatise. It's just a Trifle.   If you have a suggestion for a Trifles episode, let us know. If you use your idea on the air, we'll send you some Sherlockian goodies.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles290 Baker Street and Beyond by Michael Harrison Other episodes mentioned:  Episode 219 - Moriarty's Mathematics Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube Email us at trifles @ ihearofsherlock DOT com Support us on Patreon and become eligible for our regular giveaways.   Sponsor The eBSJ   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Ma

“a curious lisp in her utterance” [HOUN]  In the canon of Sherlock Holmes stories, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle gave us settings and characters that spring to life in our minds. His vivid descriptions help us to visualize the places and people that Holmes encounters.   However, there's one subtle example that might go unnoticed by the untrained eye. Listener Anna Brindisi-Behrens, a speech pathologist by trade, brought it to our attention. It's just a Trifle.   If you have a suggestion for a Trifles episode, let us know. If you use your idea on the air, we'll send you some Sherlockian goodies.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles287 Canadian Holmes Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube Email us at trifles @ ihearofsherlock DOT com Support us on Patreon and become eligible for our regular giveaways.   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band Copyright: Creati

“one might think that you were afraid of our finding something out” [PRIO]  The first week of the month means it's time for another round of Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist, in which we take a look at a piece of old Sherlockian scholarship and discuss it anew. In this case, it's Trevor Hall's essay "A Note on The Priory School" from his book Sherlock Holmes: Ten Literary Studies.   Hall manages to find a clue buried later in "The Blanched Soldier" and traces it back to "The Priory School." What he found is enough to shock even the most devoted fans of Thorneycroft Huxtable, M.A., Ph.D., etc. It's just a Trifle.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles288 Sherlock Holmes: Ten Literary Studies by Trevor Hall Sherlock Holmes: Fact or Fiction? by T.S. Blakeney Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube Email us at trifles @ ihearofsherlock.com Support us on Patreon and become eligible for our regular giveaways.   Sponsor The BSI Press   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marin

“run down to the advertising agency and have this put in the evening papers” [BLUE] We know Sherlock Holmes valued the agony column; we discussed that previously on Episode 50. Looking back at a paper by an advertising executive from the mid-20th century — a real-life Mad Man — we find the makings of an expert copywriter and marketer.   We even identify a media buyer. All of this and more, related to advertising in the Canon. It's just a Trifle.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles287 The Best of the Pips (The Five Orange Pips) Seven on Sherlock (Thayer Cumings) Aboriginals (Linda & Harrison Hunt) Related episodes: Episode 286 - Strange Business Episode 109 - Brands in the Canon Episode 50 - The Agony Column Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube Email us at trifles @ ihearofsherlock DOT com Support us on Patreon and become eligible for our regular giveaways.   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchest

“the rest of that strange company” [DANC]  Men and women from professions of all kinds consulted Sherlock Holmes. And throughout the Canon we're introduced to a number of companies, either by name or type of business.    But some of them stand out because of their unusual categories. Strange company, indeed. It's just a Trifle.   Full show notes: https://ihose.co/trifles286 Thank you to our sponsor, the BSI Press.   Please support Trifles on Patreon: https://patreon.com/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