“Holmes would talk about nothing but violins” [CARD]. Does the quality of an instrument affect the ability of the player? Marketers of high-end instruments would certainly like us to believe so. In Sherlock Holmes's case, it is perhaps the ...
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I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere

Baker Street Elementary – Off to Violin-Land

“Holmes would talk about nothing but violins” [CARD]


Does the quality of an instrument affect the ability of the player? Marketers of high-end instruments would certainly like us to believe so.

In Sherlock Holmes's case, it is perhaps the difference between Watson tolerating his intermittent concerti and throwing the instrument through the window.

When they first meet, the young Holmes tests Watson thusly:
“Do you include violin-playing in your category of rows?”
Fortunately,...

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Tips for Making the Most of the BSI Weekend

“Let me have the straight tip and you won't be a loser” [SILV]


With the BSI Weekend coming up in January, we thought it might be helpful to provide a series of tips for the veteran attendees and the newbies alike.

The Baker Street Irregulars Weekend is happening January 7–11, 2026, and it's usually a pretty big deal if you're taking time out of your life to head into New York City for three or more days of activities with people you haven't seen in a year (or years!) or those you...

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Episode 322: The Scourers of Dancing Men

“‘Why, Holmes, it is a child’s drawing,’ I cried.” [DANC]


Just when you thought everything about Sherlock Holmes and popular culture was known, a new mystery emerges from dusty U.S. newspaper archives.

Join us as we interview the remarkable Ross E. Davies, BSI ("The Temple"), organizer of "The Scourers of the Dancing Men," a fascinating research project that dives deep into a 1903 advertising campaign for the publication of "The Adventure of the Dancing Men" in Collier’s...

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Baker Street Elementary – Through the Magic Door

“who seems to have the powers of magic” [SUSS]


We don't hear much of magic in the Sherlock Holmes stories, other than Holmes being called a wizard four times and a magician once (can you name the stories?). While he did have a "human love for admiration and applause," [SIXN] Holmes kept his agency flat-footed upon the ground.

His creator, of course, was another story. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, known worldwide for his perfect reasoning machine, was also fascinated by spiritualism and...

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Episode 321: Sherlock Holmes Into the Fire

“An expression of the most dreadful horror.” [HOUN]

Join us as we explore Sherlock Holmes Into the Fire, a new, two-volume collection that reimagines Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Gothic tales through the lens of Sherlock Holmes. Our guest Margie Deck discusses how Doyle’s eerie, atmospheric stories — often overshadowed by Sherlock Holmes — reveal the author’s deeper fascination with mystery, psychology, and the supernatural.

We talk about the creative process behind pairing each...

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