Episode 392 – Anxiety

“weighed down with some great anxiety” [FIVE] 

Where would Sherlock Holmes be without fear and anxiety? It was a common state of mind for a number of his clients, but Holmes himself also exhibited anxious behavior from time to time.

In which stories can we find anxiety? Don't be nervous; we have 10 examples. But there are still more to come that will feature in a discussion in a second part. It's just a Trifle.

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Download | 53.4 MB, 38:54 

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Links / Notes

• All of our social links: https://linktr.ee/ihearofsherlock
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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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Episode 353 – The Dental Holmes

“a set of excellent teeth” [RESI] 

Around these parts, we've surveyed the implications of teeth, teeth marks and other clues for the purpose of investigation and detection (listen to Episode 206), but we never looked comprehensively at teeth.

In this episode, our discussion ranges from Oscar Wilde's choppers to the history of unfair stereotypes, to pondering how one can tell the cut from a tooth from the cut of a dull knife, and more. It's just a Trifle.

 

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Download | 39.5 MB, 28:50

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles353
• Oscar Wilde's Teeth (Writers in London in the 1890s)
• Testy Teeth! Dental Interventions in 19th Century London (Museum of London)
• "Teeth" by Spike Milligan (AllPoetry)
• Related episodes:
• Episode 206 - Smile When You Say That (Season 4)
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• Email us at trifles @ ihearofsherlock.com
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Sponsor

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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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Episode 309 – Rambling About

“devoted to a series of walks” [WIST] 

In at least four separate cases, we know that Holmes and Watson were out strolling around London. How does this square with Holmes's aversion toward exercise?

And what about other occasions in the countryside? Was Holmes a man of nature, was he gathering information, or was it something else? 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, we'll send you some Sherlockian goodies.

Our Patreon supporters can listen to our shows ad-free and every one of them is eligible for our monthly and quarterly drawings for Baker Street Journals. Join our community of patrons today.

Download | 42.1 MB, 30:39

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles309
• Related episode:
• IHOSE Episode 200: Enola Holmes
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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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Episode 274 – Trees, Part 1: Over the Oak / Under the Elm

“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.

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Download | 13.5 MB, 28:24

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles274
• Inspired by The Botanical Holmes: A Monograph on Plants in the Time of Sherlock Holmes, Volume 6 in The Sherlock Holmes Natural History Series by Donald Girard Jewell.
• Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube
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Sponsor

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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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Episode 269 – A Seven-Per-Cent Solution

“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 Sherlock Holmes: cocaine.

Thanks to a helpful article from a listener, we decided to delve into the history of medicinal cocaine and Victorian England's attitude toward it. It's just a Trifle.

Download | 10.3 MB, 20:58

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles269
• The Seven-Per-Cent Solution (History Today)
• Other episodes mentioned:
• Episode 84 - The Morocco Case
• Episode 188 - Tattoos
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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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Episode 202 – Child Psychology

 “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 decided absence of children in the Canon. When we do find them, they tend to be in service of furthering a plot point rather than as fully developed characters.

There are perhaps one or two exceptions, but children in the Sherlock Holmes stories are there in service to Sherlock Holmes. It's just a Trifle.

Download | 11.6 MB, 25:57

Sherlock Holmes: Trifles · Child Pscyhology

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles202

Sponsor

• The BSI Press

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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Episode 178 – Insomnia

“It may give him a sleepless night” [FIVE]  

Have you had trouble sleeping lately? You're not alone. There were plenty of people in the Sherlock Holmes stories who struggled to sleep as well.

Whether it was because they were horrified by something that happened to them, troubled by something they did, or were determined to crack a problem, they lost sleep over it. It may not seem like it to you, but it's just a Trifle.

Download | 14.2 MB, 31:19

         

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles178
• On the Sleepless Lives of Writers (LitHub)
• Charles Dickens: Observer of Sleep and Its Disorders (American Sleep Disorders Association and Sleep Research Society)
• Short film: Honoré de Balzac's 50 Cups of Coffee a Day (Amazon Prime Video)

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• The Baker Street Journal

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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Episode 177 – Billy the Page

“Billy advanced and drew away” [MAZA]  

We're used to reading about Mrs. Hudson ushering clients in and out, and providing various domestic services for Sherlock Holmes. But now and again, we find ourselves in the presence of young Billy, the page.

What was a page? And was Billy the only one at 221B Baker Street? In Vol. 2, No. 3 of The Sherlock Holmes Journal, G.B. Newton made an assessment of who served and when in his article "Billy the Page," and in our monthly "Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist" feature, we test his hypothesis. It's just a Trifle.

Download | 9.8 MB, 21:19

            

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles177
• Page (servant) - Wikipedia
• The Sherlock Holmes Journal

Sponsor

• The Baker Street Journal

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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Episode 166 – Infectious Diseases in the Canon

“he contracted some loathsome disease” [YELL]  

Dr. Watson was a general practitioner, and one "with very limited experience and mediocre qualifications," as Holmes blurted out in "The Dying Detective." It's the reason he called for a specialist in rare diseases.

With global news being filled with talk of coronavirus, we thought it might be the perfect time to reflect on what we know about infectious diseases in the Sherlock Holmes stories. It's just a trifle.

Download | 11.9 MB, 25:56

Sherlock Holmes: Trifles · Infectious Diseases in the Canon

 

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles166
• Contagion (Lapham's Quarterly)

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• The Baker Street Journal

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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Episode 162 – Black History in the Canon

“should not gossip about there being a black child in the neighborhood.” [YELL] 

Steve Dixie in "The Three Gables," Lucy Hebron in "The Yellow Face," and the unnamed mulatto in "Wisteria Lodge" are notable black people in the Canon. Actually, they're the only ones. What does this say about Arthur Conan Doyle's attitude and treatment toward them?

We know about the shocking way he chose to portray Steve Dixie – at least shocking by our standards. What were prevailing attitudes of the day? And how does Conan Doyle fare? It's just a trifle.

Download | 11.8 MB, 25:46

     

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles162
• Black British People in the 19th Century (Wikipedia)
• IHOSE Episode 44: Watson and Holmes (New Paradigm Studios)
• IHOSE Episode 81: Mycroft Holmes (Kareem Abdul Jabbar)

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• The Baker Street Journal

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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Episode 152 – Hats

“his strange headgear” [SPEC]  

Sherlock Holmes is synonymous with a certain type of hat. We don't need to mention the kind. You know what it is.

But he never wore one in the stories, which you probably also know. But what about some of the other hats that were mentioned by name in the Canon? It's kind of a hat check name check in this episode. And it's just a trifle.

Download | 13.4 MB, 29:20

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles152
• Bowler hat
• Wideawake hat
• Get your own "Signs of Four" merchandise from our store. Over 20 designs to choose from on mugs and a variety of colored t-shirts. HURRY! This store closes at the end of 2019.

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• The Baker Street Journal

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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Episode 129 - Americans and Sherlock Holmes

“It is always a joy to meet an American” [NOBL]  

Americans have been avid fans of Sherlock Holmes since the earliest days. The novels were pirated and the short stories were syndicated to reach millions of American readers.

And Sherlock Holmes himself was a fan of Americans. There's a wide variety of Americans and American locales that popped up in the Canon quite frequently. And those are worth trifling over.

Download | 7.9 MB, 17:20 

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Links / Notes

• This episode: ihose.co/trifles129
• Get your own "Signs of Four" merchandise from our store. Over 20 designs to choose from on mugs and a variety of colored t-shirts.

Sponsor

• The Baker Street Irregulars Press

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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Episode 47 - Happy Families

"to mar the contentment of their family life" [VALL] 

Family. For many, it's a part of the holiday season. And with Thanksgiving coming up tomorrow in the United States, it's a perfect opportunity to reflect on families in the Sherlock Holmes stories.

And in doing so, we come to a rather sad conclusion: that many of the families in the Canon were not happy ones at all. Just what was it about these familial situations that caused things to go awry? We explore that question in this episode of Trifles.

Download | 9.3 MB, 20:21 

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Links / Notes

• I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere Episode 58: Thankful for Sherlock Holmes

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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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