Episode 40: Morphic Graffiti and The Revenge of Sherlock Holmes

What adaptation of the canon do the Baker Street Babes consider the greatest Sherlockian film of all time? Which movie weaves the best villain and a long-lost member of the Holmes family into a single immaculate tapestry known as "Thorpe"? Is it true that each and every film would be substantially improved with the addition of mechanized min-T-rexes? And which actor to play Sherlock Holmes provides both the smallest stature and the biggest presence of any to date, despite doing so with both hands wedged firmly behind his back?   Lyndsay and Maria answer these questions and far more in a stunning new interview with Lyndsay's fiance Nicholas Anderson, the founder of the shatteringly unique new society (it is NOT a scion, we learn) The Knights of Thorpe. Discover its origins, how to become a Thorpe yourself, ways to revere the Sacred Film, and rejuvenate your love of Sherlockiana in the most reverential—and perhaps unexpected—way possible. Welcome to Episode #89, Live & Local from the 2023 BSI Weekend in NYC: The Grand High Thorpe! The Bylaws of The Knights of Thorpe 1. The KoT shall be open to all regardless of gender expression or sexuality. 2. Membership shall be in perpetuity, unless it is decided that a member has been engaged in harassment, assault, or other unseemly behavior as decided by a majority of the Grand/Great/Spiffy Thorpes. 3. All members shall be invested with the name of Thorpe. 4. The Knights shall further the cause of finding the joy in the Sherlockian canon and expanded canon. 5. Toasts to Thorpe shall be often, vigorous, and encouraged. 6. A KoT shall not be allowed to specify which Thorpe they are toasting. 7. Toasts shall also be encouraged regarding unsung heroes of the canon, ie: bees, Mrs Hudson’s tea set, unnamed dock workers, etc. 8. Meetings shall be. 9. Unless meetings don’t happen. 10. Membership shall be decided based on uniqueness of the application, and arbitrated by the Grand High Thorpe. 11. The Grand High Thorpe shall be the longest serving member of the KoT, unless they don’t want to, then it shall fall to whoever receives nomination from the Great and Spiffy High THORPES. 12. Grand/Great/Spiffy High Thorpes can be removed from office if unable or unwilling to perform their duties as decided by unanimous vote of the other two. 13. Grand High Thorpe may also retire; they will still be members but will surrender seniority in matters of election to office of Grand High Thorpe. 14. Anyone who had involvement in the Sacred Film shall be considered members, especially the revered Ben Syder, Gareth David-Lloyd, and of course Dominic Keating. 15. The Nemesis shall be referred to by his true name, Robert. 16. Articles may be amended or added by majority vote of G/G/S Thorpe. Thorpe!

Yes, it's been a decade since the airing of BBC Sherlock's "A Study in Pink." And while time has absolutely no meaning in the age of COVID, it has been an extraordinary ten years of memories thanks to the little British show that surprised the world. So we take some time to talk about our memories of the Sherlock fandom and the crazy trajectory of the show, some of your memories, and revisiting the first 221B Con and SherlockeDCC at San Diego Comic Con. Regardless of how you feel about the show, it undoubtedly had an astounding effect on not only the Sherlockian world but on fandom and pop culture as a whole. And so in honor of BBC Sherlock, we present an hour and a half of nostalgia. Enjoy!

The world is a difficult place right now. A place where it's OK to not be OK. However, we do hope you're OK and that maybe some silly talk about "The Solitary Cyclist" and The Diogenes Club as places of social distancing may brighten your spirits. In this episode Maria and Ashley do just that while Curly, Lyndsay, Taylor, Sarah, and Amy check in with all of you, tell you a bit about how we're doing, and that we love you. Sure, it's a bit sappy, a bit silly, and rather giggly... but that's what we do isn't it? We're your friends who chat about Sherlock Holmes with you. And sometimes syphilis. And we've missed you. Music featured: by Marshall Usinger by Michael Vignola

Curly chats with Elinor Gray about her new conference: The Left Coast Sherlockian Symposium. The Left Coast Sherlockian Symposium was created in the vacuum of Sherlock Seattle, and molded in the image of , , and other Sherlockian events around the United States. LCSS is a fun and educational weekend of talks, socializing, and friendship in the Pacific Northwest. Join us October 12th & 13th, 2019, for this special left coast event! Check out their website for more information:

Our Live & Local series are our sit down with a fascinating Sherlockian one-on-one in person chats. This go round Lyndsay sits with Edgar Award nominated Michael Sims about his work, Arthur and Sherlock, as well as some other fascinating Sherlockian tidbits and anecdotes.

We were on ! Yes, they gave us an amazing Sherlock Holmes cake for our annual charity ball for wounded veterans during BSI Weekend. And it was amazing. Lyndsay, Tiffany, and Maria sit down and talk about the process, the cake, the ball, and every delicious morsel in between.

BSB Amy and our good friend Chris Zordan discuss everything Irene Adler with a wonderful audience at 221B Con. Who was Irene Adler? Why is she so important to fans even though she only appears in one story? Taking on this larger than life adventuress that bested Sherlock Holmes is something many adaptations (all adaptations?) get kinda wrong. Why is that? They unpack the recent adaptations and their portrayals of Adler, from Rachel McAdam's UPS Service Adler for Moriarty to in Elementary where... spoiler alert... she is Moriarty to Cutty from House, MD.

Join us for our live podcast at 221B Con speaking with the one and only Nancy Springer, author of the Enola Holmes series. Where did Enola come from? What was Nancy's favorite book? Why did Florence Nightingale have 56 white Persian cats? We get the details about the film announcement starring Millie Bobbie Brown from Stranger Things and the ingenious way Nancy Springer researched the Victorian era for the series.   Music: Checkerboard, Jason Donnelly

It's not every day you find an entire re-creation of 221B Baker Street... it's even rarer when that re-creation is in Los Angeles. Chuck Kovacic is a longtime Sherlockian and utterly devoted to having the most authentic Sherlock Holmes sitting room in the world. The amount of detail and research that has been poured into the room where so many of the stories truly took place is nothing short of astounding.   We had a chat with Chuck about how the sitting room came about, some of the items he has (and how he got them), and how you can visit the sitting room yourself (even online!).

Babe Ardy visits Bonnie MacBird for tea, shortbread, and a discussion of Unquiet Spirits, the second of MacBird's trilogy of Holmes pastiches. Join us to hear about what it's like to write and research a Holmes novel, including tales of location-scouting for books, and visiting whisky distilleries by way of research. We also chat about the historical background for the book and Ardy learns a lot about wine, whisky, and why writing a pastiche is both fun and challenging. .   The book is available at , , and all good bookshops! . You can .