Wednesday, October 15, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“so subtly influenced by it” [STUD] 



It is well known that T.S. Eliot lifted lines from "The Musgrave Ritual" and appropriated them for Murder in the Cathedral, as well as found inspiration for Macavity in the Napoleon of crime.

In this "Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist" episode, Don Hardenbrook, BSI ("Huret, the Boulevard Assassin") found a deeper meaning in Four Quartets, a collection of four interlinked poems by Eliot. One that echoes of The Hound of the Baskervilles. And it's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

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Download | 29.7 MB 23:35



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, October 8, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“a huge expanse” [HOUN] 

Credit: Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0 


There are four main characters in The Hound of the Baskervilles: Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson, the hound, and the moor. [Record scratch SFX]

Yes, the moor. Inspired by a clip from an old IHOSE episode, we explore why this ever-present setting looms large in the story, both when it's explicitly mentioned and when it's not. It's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

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Download | 23.9 MB 25:27



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, October 1, 2025

2:21 AM 0

“traced in the Cornish branch of the great Celtic speech” [DEVI] 



The Morley-Montgomery Award series rolls on, and this time we've jumped from 1979 (the last award granted, covered in Episode 453) to 1995. Dr. Margaret Nydell turns her philological attention to the Canon.

She specifically looks at Sherlock Holmes's intentions in researching the Cornish language, with its roots in Chaldean. Her article is both scholarly and delightfully funny. And it's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

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Download | 27.7 MB 28:33



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Thursday, September 25, 2025

10:19 PM 0

“What good are you going to get out of your diamond?” [MAZA] 


We're back in the theater for another Sherlock Holmes story in our series on the Apocrypha of Sherlock Holmes. It seems that Conan Doyle saw great potential in other mediums (not just the seance type, either).

The Crown Diamond: An Evening With Sherlock Holmes is clearly a rehash of the short story "The Mazarin Stone." Or was thought to be, anyway. That is, until James Montgomery, BSI ("The Red Circle") discovered it in an exercise book and determined the publication order. And it's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

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Download | 20.1 MB 22:05



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
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Wednesday, September 17, 2025

11:47 AM 0

“amused myself by visiting Lhassa...looked in at Mecca” [FINA] 


The Great Hiatus, as the interval between "The Final Problem" and "The Empty House" is known, has inspired a great deal of speculation and interpretation, thanks to Sherlock Holmes's brief and tantalizing account of his time away.

Edgar Smith took it on in his famous essay (as referenced in Episode 334), but Don Pollock took aim at the fawning acceptance in his own analysis in a 1975 issue of The Baker Street Journal. It's just a Trifle.

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.

Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

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Download | 27.1 MB 29:07



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
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Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, September 10, 2025

3:16 PM 0

“lumbering upon its way” [DEVI] 


Across the Sherlock Holmes stories, we find a few mentions of what seems to be a strange and magical place in English residences: the lumber room.

In old country houses and in the city at 221B Baker Street, as well as in descriptions of the mind, the lumber room is a place that deserves a little exploration. And it's just a Trifle.

Thanks to Kaj for the suggestion for this episode. If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.

Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 27.1 MB 29:07



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, September 3, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“I was able to reach Baskerville Hall” [HOUN] 



There are a handful of locations in the Sherlock Holmes stories that are regularly sought out by fans. Of course 221B Baker Street is at the top of the list, along with the Reichenbach Falls. For those who venture to the west, Baskerville Hall is always a source of inspiration.

But where exactly was it? Scholars have been debating that subject for decades, and in 1979 Howard Brody, BSI ("Anstruther") won the Morley-Montgomery Award for his paper that attempted to settle the matter. It's just a Trifle.

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.

Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

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Download | 27.1 MB 29:07



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
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Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, August 27, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“took to the stage” [TWIS] 


When faced with four months of an empty theater in a six-month lease in 1910, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle did the only thing he could on a moment's notice: he turned to Sherlock Holmes.

The Stonor Case (later renamed The Speckled Band) went into production and is considered part of the group of stories categorized as apocryphal. While the name was the same as the short story, there were departures from the original. This and many tales about this play are all a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

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Download | 27.1 MB 29:07



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
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Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, August 20, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“Well, but China?” [REDH]  


Our recent episode about real people who inspired characters in the Sherlock Holmes stories spills over into this episode for our monthly Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist-themed episode.

Jay Finley Christ wrote a piece in 1949 that wasn't widely published until 1975 (if one can call the audience of Baker Street Miscellanea wide). Prof. Christ takes on John Dickson Carr's biography and other Sherlockians, debunking a myth about the inspiration for Dr. Watson. And it's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 20.4 MB 21:41



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, August 13, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“There are the originals” [LAST]  


Sherlockians go to great pains to "play the game," meaning that Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson were real. If we can drop the mask for a moment, we all know they were creations of one Arthur Conan Doyle.

We also know that every author is inspired by people, names, and places around them. So too was Conan Doyle when he created certain characters. Who were some of the characters in the Canon who were inspired by real people? It's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 35.3 MB 24:39



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
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Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, August 6, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“entirely mistaken” [CHAS]  


The Morley-Montgomery Award-winning article we're discussing this month is by the legendary Jack Tracy, author of The Encyclopedia Sherlockiana and founder of Gaslight Publications.

"St. Saviour's, Near King's Cross" appeared in Vol. 27, No. 4 of the Baker Street Journal in 1977 and looked specifically at the church where Mary Sutherland was supposed to marry Hosmer Angel. Previous Sherlockian scholars were unaware of some hidden London history that Tracy was able to uncover. And it's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 35.3 MB 24:39



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
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Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, July 30, 2025

3:06 PM 0

“engage a special” [FINA] 


This marks the fourth episode in our series of The Apocrypha of Sherlock Holmes — stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that are technically not part of the original Canon. 

"The Story of the Lost Special" was written by Conan Doyle in 1898 about a train that has vanished from the face of the earth, but doesn't explicitly include Sherlock Holmes. How does this then tie into the great detective? Stay tuned, because it's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 35.3 MB 24:39



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, July 23, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“play tricks with me and I’ll crush you” [ABBE] 



Was Sherlock Holmes too lenient with how he handled some of the criminals he defeated? There are a number whom he caught and set free, flouting the law in the process.


Inspired by a recent article in The Baker Street Journal, we look at examples in a handful of stories and compare the fates of the accused in each. Did they get what they deserved? It's much more than just a Trifle.


If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 35.3 MB 24:39


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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, July 16, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“another thread which I have extricated out of the tangled skein” [HOUN] 


It has long been accepted that the original title of A Study in Scarlet was meant to be A Tangled Skein. While there is no surviving manuscript of the first Sherlock Holmes story, a single page of notes has long served as Sherlock Holmes's "birth certificate." 


However, Matt Hall discovered a letter in Sydney, Australia that proves otherwise. His research is presented in Vol. 37 No. 2 of The Sherlock Holmes Journal.  And it's much more than just a Trifle.


If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 35.3 MB 24:39


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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, July 9, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“put £100 down in front of him” [BLUE] 


Humans are suckers for round numbers. And 100 seems like a perfectly reasonable one to settle on. It's the first three-digit number (in Arabic numbers, that is; Romans were happy to hit a C note).

When it comes to £100 in the Sherlock Holmes stories, it's a figure often associated with some sort of scam — enough to get attention and secure the trust of the mark. Which stories feature £100 and what were the circumstances? It's just a Trifle.

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 35.3 MB 24:39


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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, July 2, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“I had painted” [TWIS] 

The Morley-Montgomery Award-winning article we're discussing this month is by H.C. Potter from Vol. 26, No. 2 of The Baker Street Journal.

In it, Potter looks at Watson's prosaic way of setting the scene for us. He selects excerpts from a number of stories to prove his case. Was he successful in backing up his claims? It's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 35.3 MB 24:39



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
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Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, June 25, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“why should anyone play me such a trick?” [CARD] 


After a brief hiatus, we're back to the third in our series of The Apocrypha of Sherlock Holmes — stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that are technically not part of the original Canon. 

This is the shortest of all of the Apocrypha and it was created for the British Royal Family in a special edition. "How Watson Learned the Trick" is a lovely addition to the non-Canonical apocrypha. It's literally a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 35.3 MB 24:39



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, June 18, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“Is Mrs. Watson in?” [FINA] 



We all know Watson had more than one wife; the number has been debated over the years. But it's his second wife that seems to be the most intriguing.

In this "Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist" episode, we look at David Hammer's article from Baker Street Miscellanea, No. 43. Who was the second Mrs. Watson? It's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 35.3 MB 24:39



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Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Wednesday, June 11, 2025

2:21 PM 0

“traces of the ancient people” [HOUN] 


When Watson noted a "difficult and dangerous quest" on "the forbidden moor" in The Hound of the Baskervilles. The moor played an outsized role in that story, providing the perfect setting for this gothic tale of terror, greed, and mystery.

What is the moor really like? How does the Canonical version differ from reality? Listener Nelson Pigeon wrote in to ask, and we answer. It's just a Trifle. 

If you have a question for us, please email us at trifles@ihearofsherlock.com. If you use your inquiry on the show, we'll send you a thank you gift.


Don't forget to listen to "Trifling Trifles" — short-form content that doesn't warrant a full episode. This is a benefit exclusively for our paying subscribers. Check it out (Patreon | Substack).

Leave Trifles a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; listen to this episode here or wherever you get podcasts


Download | 35.3 MB 24:39



Links

Music credits

Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra
Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band.
Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0



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Our Team

Scott Monty and Burt Wolder are both members of the Baker Street Irregulars, the literary society dedicated to Sherlock Holmes. They have co-hosted the popular show I Hear of Everywhere since June 2007.

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