Sherlock Holmes: Trifles

Witchcraft in Baker Street

08 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"What's this, Mr. Holmes? Man, it's witchcraft!" [VALL] Continuing on our supernatural theme, we land on witchcraft. And not just any witchcraft, ei...

Hocus Pocus

01 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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 numb...

Sherlock Holmes's Tours-de-Force

25 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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 ...

The Hoof-Marks in "The Priory School"

18 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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...

Sherlock Holmes and Shakespeare

11 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"A touch! A distinct touch!" [VALL] Every author owes something to Shakespeare. His inventiveness with language has withstood the test of time, and ma...

The Dates in the Red-Headed League

04 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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 ...

The Rushed Wedding

27 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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...

The Tree That Wasn't

20 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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 Sherlockia...

Trees, Part 2: Branching Out

13 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The Problem of the Case-Book

06 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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...

Trees, Part 1: Over the Oak / Under the Elm

31 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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...

Grief

23 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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 wer...

In Memoriam: Muzzafar ad-Din

16 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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 o...

On the Scent with Sherlock Holmes, Part 3

09 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"the air of London is the sweeter for my presence" [FINA] We're back with the third and final installment in our series On the Scent with Sherlock Hol...

Missing Three-Quarter One-Third Discovered

02 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"this extraordinary league" [REDH]   For fans of sportsball, the concept of fantasy leagues might seem like a modern invention. A late-20th cen...

A Seven-Per-Cent Solution

23 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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 Sherloc...

The Politician, the Lighthouse, and the Trained Cormorant

16 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"the source of these outrages is known" [VEIL]   The Masters Class series continues, and this time, we delve into the active mind of Nicholas Utec...

On the Scent with Sherlock Holmes, Part 2

09 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"dropping from branch to branch" [CREE]    The London in which Sherlock Holmes lived gave off its own scents. Whether the roads were paved or cove...

A Final Illumination on the Lucca Code

02 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"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 i...

Roll Out the Beryl

26 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"Halloa, Beryl!" [HOUN]   In The Hound of the Baskervilles, Sir Henry falls for Stapleton's sister, who was said to be "a young lady of attraction...

The Archetypical Sherlock Holmes

19 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"men of such a different type" [SOLI]   We're beginning a new monthly series focused on some of the best scholarship over the years. The kind of ar...

On the Scent with Sherlock Holmes, Part 1

12 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"I am one of the hounds" [STUD]   On two occasions in the Sherlock Holmes stories do we find Holmes employing a dog to help him track a scent. But b...

Great Beginnings

05 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

"On the very day that I had come to this conclusion" [STUD]  It all began with a chance meeting between two medical school colleagues at the Criterio...

The Friendship Club

29 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"nothing but a welcome for my friend and colleague" [TWIS]   The great heroes of literature are frequently teamed up with a sidekick: Don Quixote w...

Reptiles & Amphibians

22 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"a curiously reptilian fashion" [FINA]   Aside from vipers, cobras, and adders, there are other reptiles in the Sherlock Holmes stories that either...

Did Sherlock Holmes Have a Sense of Humor?

15 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"Homes seldom laughed." [MAZA]     Sherlock Holmes could be deadly serious. As in his encounter with Professor Moriarty, his matter-of-fact expla...

Street Lamps

08 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"Holmes pointed to the street lamp" [SIXN]   It's impossible to think about Victorian London without imagining street lamps. We're most familiar wi...

Damsels in Distress

01 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"she confessed with distress" [LADY]   Sherlock Holmes took on clients of all sorts, often when they were puzzled, had nowhere else to turn, or wer...

Romance in the Canon

24 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"a love-story or an elopement" [SIGN]     We don't think of the Sherlock Holmes stories as being romances, and yet there are elements of romance ...

British Birds

17 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"a fierce old bird of prey" [SPEC]    Birds are part of British life. Such is the reality of living on an island. And there were a great variety o...

Was Sherlock Holmes Crazy?

10 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"You're crazy!" [DANC]  Sherlock Holmes had his eccentricities, without a question. Many scholars over the years have debated his mental health, wit...

Meretricious Effects

03 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"to produce his meretricious finales" [BLAN]  There are a number of times in the 60 Sherlock Holmes stories when Holmes criticizes Watson's efforts ...

Some Freaks of Atavism

27 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"hereditary tendencies of the most diabolical kind" [FINA]  Family matters a great deal in the Sherlock Holmes stories, although we don't discover a...

Butterflies

20 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"a pin, a cork, and a card" [HOUN]   When it came to exotic insects, butterflies were all the rage in Victorian England. They were sought after by ...

Financially Speaking

13 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

 "extraordinary stories about your financial ability" [STOC]  Money was occasionally a concern for Sherlock Holmes. But when, and more importantly,...

Something Amiss in The Three Gables

06 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

 "Have you noticed anything amiss with them of late?" [SILV]  "The Three Gables" isn't likely to be found on anyone's "best of" list of Sherlock Ho...

Plotting Lovers

29 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

 "it was her plot as much as mine" [ABBE]  From the realm of conjecture: what if the star-crossed lovers in "The Adventure of Abbey Grange" and "The...

Sherlock Holmes, Book Collector

22 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"Maybe you collect yourself, sir" [EMPT]  Sherlock Holmes shared his reading interests on occasion, and they tended to be wide and varied. Some of th...

Beetles

16 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"pinned like a beetle on a card" [BLAC]  It's the third week of the month, and that means it's the exotic animal episode. Last month we covered worms...

How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?

08 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"passionate, whole-hearted, tropical, ill-balanced" [THOR]    Maria Gibson (nee Pinto) was a troubled woman. What could have driven her to her fina...

Watson's Medical Career

01 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"a general practitioner with very limited experience and mediocre qualifications" [DYIN]    We know Watson had a serious medical career before he m...

The Evolution of Sherlock Holmes, Part 3

25 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"some arm-chair lounger who evolves" [STUD]  From a humble beginning to the heights of international fame and importance, the career of Sherlock Holm...

Worms

18 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"Why does fate play such tricks with poor, helpless worms?" [BOSC]   On the third episode of every month in Season 5, we explore exotic animals in t...

A Window into Windows

11 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"window-breaking Furies" [VALL]   Windows are everywhere in the Sherlock Holmes stories. But in certain cases, they form an essential part of the pl...

I Know That Country, Holmes

04 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"It is full of old houses which are named after the men who built them centuries ago." [SUSS]   Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was a master storyteller. He ...

The Evolution of Sherlock Holmes, Part 2

28 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"evolved from his own inner consciousness" [BOSC]  In Episode 237, we looked at how Holmes's personality traits changed over the course of his career...

Jellyfish

21 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"Cyanea! Cyanea!" [LION]   In the third week of every month in our fifth season, Trifles looks at exotic animals. We turn to the sea this time, exam...

The Evolution of Sherlock Holmes

14 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"Let me show you the evolution of this case" [WIST]   In our last episode, we discussed the subtle yet undeniable change in the nature of the relati...

Holmes & Lestrade Through the Years

07 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"That you, Lestrade?" [EMPT] One might say that Sherlock Holmes and Inspector G. Lestrade had a contentious relationship. While this may be the popula...

Two Maids A-Missing

30 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"Altogether there are eight maids" [MUSG]   Two stories. Two jewels. Two lady's maids. And two strikingly similar circumstances. In "The Blue Carbun...

Secret Societies

23 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"some secret society, some implacable organization" [VALL]  We know the Mafia, the KKK, and other named secret societies permeate the Sherlock Holmes...

Lab Rats

16 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"the direct nature of the experiment" [BRUC]   It's the third week of the month, and that means it's time for our Exotic Animals feature! When you h...

The Best Sherlock Holmes Stories

09 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"The best possible" [NOBL]   In Episode 231, we left you with a bit of a cliffhanger. The show was filled with answers to questions from listeners, ...

Your Questions, Answered

02 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"they are pretty sure to ask questions anyhow, so it would be as well to have answers" [RETI]   We're doing something a little different for this ep...

Luck in the Canon

26 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"That is very fortunate" [SCAN]   Sherlock Holmes didn't believe in superstition, the supernatural, or random guesses. He was a detective who dealt ...

Cormorants

19 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"the whole story concerning the politician, the lighthouse, and the trained cormorant" [VEIL]   There is one scant mention of a cormorant in the She...

Eyeglasses in the Canon

12 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"I stooped to the eyepiece and focussed for my vision." [SHOS]  Given Arthur Conan Doyle's training in the field of eye medicine, it's no surprise th...

More Messages

05 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"the sending of general messages" [VALL]    Sherlock Holmes was an inveterate message sender and receiver. The many notes, letters, telegrams, crypt...

Money Woes

28 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"I am a poor man" [PRIO]   Time and again, we find people in the Sherlock Holmes stories who are having money problems. As in money problems drastic...

Viper / Wiper

21 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"like a viper's tooth" [DYIN] Here we are again, ready to tackle the monthly topic of exotic animals. So naturally, we turn to the wiper. Wait, the wh...

The Crimes of Sherlock Holmes

15 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"It is fortunate for this community that I am not a criminal."[BRUC] Sherlock Holmes certainly ran with a rough crowd. Burglars, murderers, blackmaile...

Brain Fever

07 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"a sharp touch of brain-fever" [MUSG]    Inspired by two sources of Sherlockian medical scholarship, we decided to discuss brain fever. What was bra...

No. 221B Baker Street (Part 2)

31 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"Apply 221B, Baker Street" [NAVA]    Last week, we left you hanging with Vincent Starrett's chapter in his book The Private Life of Sherlock Holm...

No. 221B Baker Street (Part 1)

24 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"I have my eye on a suite in Baker Street" [STUD]   There is no question that 221B Baker Street is the most famous address in all of fiction. What ...

Mongoose

17 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"some creature of the weasel and stoat tribe" [CROO]  There was a fad in mid-century Victorian England that led to pets becoming more common. But t...

Moriarty's Mathematics

10 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"rarefied heights of pure mathematics" [VALL]   As we know, James Moriarty was a professor of mathematics. We know little about his academic appoin...

Buffets

03 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"I return with an excellent appetite" [BLAC]    The Sherlock Holmes stories are a cornucopia of content. A smorgasbord of smarts. A full menu of fu...

Colours in the Canon

24 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

 "Our own colours, green and white." [WIST]   Yes, the circle was red, the study was scarlet and the pips were orange. But there are so many other...

Cheetah and Baboon

17 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

 "It is a nice household," he murmured. "That is the baboon." [SPEC]    It seems that Dr. Grimesby Roylott had a bit of a wild side. Killed a man ...

Walking Sticks & Canes

10 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"There are certainly one or two indications upon the stick." [HOUN]  Walking sticks were once fashionable. They were just as necessary as a pair of g...

Footwear in the Canon

03 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"shoes, but no socks." [PRIO]   Over the course of our first four seasons, we covered a wide variety of haberdashery: dressing gowns, clothes, disgui...

The Three Moriartys

27 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"I can tell a Moriarty when I see one." [VALL]    Quick: in "The Final Problem," what is the name of Sherlock Holmes's arch-rival? Yes, we know it's...

Langur

20 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

 "the great black-faced monkey of the Himalayan slopes," [CREE]    It's only mentioned in passing, but the langur played an important role in "The ...

The Three Professors

13 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"His life as been academic" [CREE]    Sherlock Holmes and academic affairs are, well, elementary. [Sorry] But have you considered those who hold t...

Sherlock Holmes's Birthday

06 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

 "you could not celebrate him without being known yourself." [HOUN]   Every year, the Baker Street Irregulars meet in early January to celebrate Sh...

Typography

30 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"As I expected, his reply was typewritten" [IDEN]    While handwriting was and is distinctive enough for a detective like Sherlock Holmes to dra...

Handwriting

23 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"Have you ever had occasion to study character in handwriting?" [SIGN]    More than once, Sherlock Holmes used someone's handwriting to guide him ...

The Care and Feeding of Sherlock Holmes

16 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"Holmes smiled and rubbed his hands" [WIST]    Sherlock Holmes enjoyed breakfast. But it was often interrupted. He had a variable knowledge of bot...

Smile When You Say That

09 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"Holmes smiled and rubbed his hands" [WIST]   Did Sherlock Holmes care about teeth? There's evidence that he cared about his own teeth, as seen thr...

The Setting of Cornwall

02 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

 "sinister atmosphere of forgotten nations," [DEVI]  It's not quite a holiday for Sherlock Holmes in "The Devil's Foot," but rather a time away fro...

The Location of 221B, Part 2

26 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

  "I have my eye on a suite in Baker Street" [STUD]    In the first part of this two-episode series, we looked at the Baker Street area of Vict...

The Location of 221B, Part 1

18 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

 "we made our way back to Baker Street" [3GAR]    The address is legendary. Synonymous with its famous inhabitant, just as the deerstalker and me...

Child Pscyhology

11 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

 "Holmes, a child has done this horrid thing" [SIGN]    Many of us find our way to the Sherlock Holmes stories as children, yet there is a decide...

Spare No Expense

04 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

 "I desire you to spare no expense and no pains" [WIST]    Sherlock Holmes had to go places, see people, investigate things. And doing so meant t...

The Setting of Agra

28 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

 "Yes, this is the great Agra" [SIGN]  It's where Jonathan Small met Mahomet Singh, Dost Akbar and Abdullah Khan and together they made a pact know...

The Victims

21 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

 "You have been cruelly used" [SPEC]  We're at the end of our four-part series on Women in the Canon from The Best of the Sherlock Holmes Journal, V...

Clothing in the Canon

14 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"we did not meet to talk about the cut of my socks" [3GAR]    When you think of attire in the Sherlock Holmes stories, the mind usually turns to t...

The Dates in The Hound of the Baskervilles

07 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

 "Have you the dates of those letters?" [HOUN]  The Hound of the Baskervilles is one of Sherlock Holmes's most famous cases. But what can we say abo...

The Brook Street Business

30 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"something further from Brook Street" [RESI]  When Percy Trevelyan went to open up his practice, he found that he had more in brains than he did in...

The Setting of Dartmoor

23 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"forbear from crossing the moor in those dark hours" [HOUN]     One of the most iconic characters in the Sherlock Holmes stories is not a character...

Ladies of Title

16 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

  "Title and money—who could carry them better than she?" [ABBE]    We've investigated which women were influential in their own right in the ...

Palmer and Pritchard

09 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"Palmer and Pritchard were among the heads of their profession" [SPEC]   When he was facing off against Dr. Grimesby Roylott, Sherlock Holmes assert...

Sherlock Holmes and Philosophers

02 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"Philosophy, astronomy, and politics were marked at zero," [FIVE]  Sherlock Holmes called Professor Moriarty "a genius, a philosopher, and abstract ...

Clergymen

26 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"once a clergyman, always a clergyman" [SOLI]    We see influences of religion here and there in the Sherlock Holmes stories. From Biblical referenc...

The Working Girls

19 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"in the capacity of governess" [SIGN]  Sherlock Holmes had a number of clients who were women, and in certain cases, they were gainfully employed. In...

My Old Friend Charlie Peace

12 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"My old friend Charlie Peace was a violin virtuoso" [ILLU]    No, Charlie Peace was not a colleague of Norman Neruda or Sarasate. He was a notoriou...

Tattoos

05 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"I have made a small study of tattoo marks" [REDH]  Tattoos. A rare topic in the Sherlock Holmes story, yet they're key in helping Sherlock Holmes to...

Justice, Part 3: Comeuppance

29 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"there never was a man who deserved punishment more" [IDEN]  There are certain instances in the Sherlock Holmes stories where the villain is so foul,...

Watson's Patience

22 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"This is unworthy of you, Holmes" [SIGN]  Sherlock Holmes wasn't an easy man to live with. Still, it's impressive that Watson didn't unload on him mo...

The Women of Influence

15 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"accomplished, a wonder woman in every way" [ILLU]   Each month, we look at a piece of Sherlockian or Holmesian scholarship that might be outside o...