“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 unnoticed. What similarities do we see among them? How did Conan Doyle's writing about them change over time? It's just a Trifle.   All of...

“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 know about the history of linoleum, how was it manufactured, and what role did it play in the Canon? It's just a Trifle.   All of...

“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 Sherlock Holmes stories, but they're worth a Trifle. You can make topic suggestions to us — if we choose something you recommend...

“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, Edgar W. Smith took a closer look at the timing between the battle, Watson's recovery time, travel to London and hotel stay, and...

“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 in Denmark points in that direction. Hop on board with us in this monthly travel series episode! It's just a Trifle. You can make...

“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 of the foreign and antiquated terms in the Canon. Fair warning, though: this is a pun-filled zone. Word nerds unite! It's just a...

“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 Ennis had an idea related to a substance we know well today, based on his observations in emergency rooms. And it’s anything but a...

“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 Baker Street Reader. Along the way, we uncover a surprising fact about Ball. And it’s anything but a Trifle. All of our supporters...

“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 London suburb? Michael Harrison assists with an essay from In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes, and it’s just a Trifle.   All of our...

“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 the Canon. It's just a Trifle.   Oh, and just for our Patreon and Substack supporters, we have some additional analysis in a bonus...

“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? And what do we know about their variety and history? It's just another treat – a Trifle.   Oh, and just for our Patreon supporters,...

“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 serves as our anchor.   Schenck offers a look at one of the monographs Holmes mentioned in The Sign of Four and proceeds to compare it with...

“whatever luggage you intend to take” [FINA]     We're back on the rails this week, with our monthly travel-related episode. This time, we turn to an article written by H.J. Curjel for The Sherlock Holmes Journal, Vol. 12, Nos. 3 & 4, Summer 1976.    Specifically, we review his survey of stories in which railway journeys long and short took place, and specifically those in which luggage was mentioned or when people traveled without luggage. It's just a Trifle.   If you have a...

“half-humorous, half-cynical” [DEVI]     Celebrate our terquasquicentennial with us as we take a full look at "half" mentions in the Canon. While there are nearly 400 instances of the word, there are a select few that tell us something about hte personality of Sherlock Holmes.    Namely, that Sherlock Holmes used the term "half" strategically when he wanted to sound a certain way. It's just a Trifle.   If you have a suggestion for a Trifles episode, let us know at trifles @...

“the secret societies must have done it” [STUD]     Here and there across the Sherlock Holmes stories, we find ourselves embroiled in the intrigue that involves secret societies. Many are of foreign origin, and they're almost always associated with death and violence.   What are these organizations and in which stories can we find them? It's just a Trifle.   If you have a suggestion for a Trifles episode, let us know at trifles @ ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your idea on the air,...

“His body was absolutely corpulent” [GREE]     Join us for another "Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist" episode, in which we bring a piece of Sherlockian scholarship about a trifling issue to you.    This time, we look at Anna Brindisi Behrens' article "Corpulence in the Canon: Beyond Stereotypes" from the Winter 2023 issue of The Baker Street Journal (Vol. 73., No. 4). It's a look beyond the obvious, and as always, it's just a Trifle.   If you have a suggestion for a Trifles episode,...

“not far from Frinton.” [RETI]     It's travel time again! The second episode of every month in Season 8 is travel-themed, and we ride the rails again with "An Essex Adventure" by A. Godfrey Hunt from The Sherlock Holmes Journal, Vol. 21, No. 1 (Winter 1992).    Here we have the case of Holmes getting a client-cum-suspect out of the way. And in doing so, he sent Josiah Amberley with Watson on a wild goose chase to Essex. Why Essex, though? It's just a Trifle.   If you have a...

“chalk his billiard-cue” [MISS]     Back in Season 3, when we did a series on Games and Sports, we had one episode on billiards in the Sherlock Holmes stories. In this case, we were inspired by an article in the Sherlock Holmes Journal specifically mentioning Watson's billiard-playing habits.   When did Watson start playing billiards? Who was Thurston? And other than at his club, where is it likely that he engaged in the game? It's just a Trifle.   If you have a suggestion for a...

“here’s a hunting crop handy” [IDEN]     In the last episode, we reflected on Sherlock Holmes chasing James Windibank out of Baker Street. While he did so, he referenced his handy hunting crop.    Hunting crops, do (ahem) crop up in the Canon from time to time. Who used them and why? What are they used for when not being brandished as weapons? It's just a Trifle.   If you have a suggestion for a Trifles episode, let us know at trifles @ ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your idea on...

“You’ll be interested to hear that I am engaged.” [CHAS]     The name of this show was inspired in part by William Hyder, BSI ("A Most Valuable Institution"), who includes a half sheet of a trifling matter in the dinner packet of the Baker Street Irregulars each year. And as has become our tradition, each January, we use his Trifle.   Our attention turns to Hosmer Angel / James Windibank from "A Case of Identity," who led on Miss Mary Sutherland with whiskers, tinted glasses, a...

“There was no other boarder” [VALL]     The third episode of every month in Season 8 finds us revisiting familiar ground: episodes under the "Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist" category, as we revisit old Sherlockian scholarship.   This episode brings us to an overlooked chapter of a familiar book. It's James Keddie's "The Other Boarder" from Vincent Starrett's 221B: Studies in Sherlock Holmes, in which he brings in a surprising discovery from "Behind the Times." And it's just a...

“We traveled by the Underground” [REDH]       We're kicking off a new monthly series for Season 8: travel. Highly appropriate, as we travel to New York for the Baker Street Irregulars Weekend.   In this case, our travel is local within London. That is, the Underground. For as much as we associate Sherlock Holmes and London, his travel on the Underground was a bit limited. The late John Baesch, BSI helps us explore it. And it's just a Trifle.    If you have a suggestion for a...

“I have myself found it a very soothing atmosphere” [GREE]     It's easy to think of Sherlock Holmes as an automaton — Watson himself called Holmes that exact word, remarking “There is something positively inhuman in you at times.”   And yet, if we consider the detective's demeanor with clients and the types of activities he found solace in, we find a softer side of Holmes. It's just a Trifle.    If you have a suggestion for a Trifles episode, let us know at trifles @...

“Oh, my God! what a blind fool I have been!” [BERY]       Well, this is it. The final entry of Season 7 and of 2023. And it marks our 365th episode.    We reach the final episode in a quartet of episodes that took us as many months to complete, honoring Alfred Hitchcock as an inspiration. And we look back at the origins of the show, what some of the running themes have been, and where we'll take it in Season 8. It's just a Trifle.   Thank you to our loyal listeners, who are...

“a charming coquettish intimacy” [3GAB]     The final installment in this season's Masters Class is another Christopher Morley essay, "Watson à la Mode," from Vol. 1 No. 1 of The Baker Street Journal (1946).   We discuss Morley's keen analysis of Watson's eye for fashion and an extraordinary conclusion about his marriages. It's just a Trifle.   Oh, and we've issued a challenge to Trifles Patreon supporters, due before the next issue drops. A prize awaits!   If you have a...