Sherlock Holmes Related Post 3 - How Cumberbatch's Holmes Survived the Fall, The Clue?

According to Steven Moffatt, there is a clue in the final episode of Sherlock that helps solve the, 'How Did Sherlock Survive?'  Question...

I believe, after watching it twice, second time whilst rewinding and pausing,  that St Paul's Cathedral is the Clue...

The first attempt Jim has of persuading Mr Cumberbatch's Sherlock Holmes that he should jumpyou can clearly see that the Dome of the Cathedral is directly behind Sherlock... (See below Jim is walking away from him then turns to face Sherlock)

He starts giggling and jumps off the ledge towards Moriarty to inform him that he's not going to jump whilst he can change Moriarty's mind...

After Moriarty shoots himself we see Sherlock step back on a ledge and whilst on the phone to John we clearly the dome of the Cathedral is level with him... (See Below)

This is what I believe...

Sherlock Holmes Related Post 2 - House of Silk, Irregulars, Sidney Paget, Holmes related Cartoon

In the world of Modern-Day versions of Sherlock Holmes, Anthony Horowitz’s House of Silk has been pushed into the category of old news, thanks to Messrs Cumberbatch and Downey Jnr’s versions of the Worlds Greatest Detective.
So being a finger-on-the-pulse, up-to-date kind of guy, I’ve decided to write about House of Silk…

I have to be honest, before House of Silk I never read any other Book written by Anthony Horowitz, or watched much Midsomer Murders, so I didn’t know if it was a good fit, although my optimism was put in place by an endorsement of the Conan-Doyle estate… So I was relatively confident I’d enjoy it…

And I did… I thought it was well written, engaging, longer than any Conan-Doyle, Holmes Novel but that didn’t seem to matter… I thought it was a very good addition to the canon, and will enjoy a re-read as soon as I feel it needs to be read again…

But, I do have two problems that I would like to mention:

the first concerns the Baker Street Irregulars, the scruffy little urchins that are occasionally called in to help Mr. ‘Olmes, due to their inconspicuousness, underrated intelligence and loyalty… Well I get the impression that Mr. Horowitz isn’t keen on them or their use within the canon…

They are used within the story, but there are consequences because of their use, also Wiggins comes across as quite rude, uncaring and flippant when talking to Holmes. This is something I’d never have deduced from Study in Scarlet, or their other appearances in the original stories. Horowitz seems interested to highlight the dangers that Holmes places these homeless urchins when they help him… Using their appearance as a sort of moral, don’t put them in danger, message… This is a message that may have a place, but not in a Sherlock Holmes Story…

I suppose in a way I’m biased in favour of the irregulars, as my introduction into the worlds of Sherlock Holmes came in the form of the Arthur books written by the hilarious, and sadly missed, Alan Coren and also a Children’s BBC television series entitled the Baker Street Boys, that detailed the life of these lovable scamps as they solved crimes… I can’t find any clips on-line but I did discover that the future Ian Beale was in it…

And the second problem I have, is one I am almost embarrassed to mention… It is not anything within the control of Anthony Horowitz and therefore it is not an improvement that can be made by him… But I still believe the story would be better presented with some Sidney Paget style illustrations… Obviously with Mr. Paget being deceased since 1908, I’m not suggesting we channel his artistic spirit via a medium, but somebody who could produce Paget type illustrations would have been nice to have…

The reason I believe it would be an improvement, I suppose, is because of my role as illustrator and cartoonist to my own literary efforts, I guess I’m just pro-illustration… But also I do really like the illustrations of Mr. Paget, he was after all the man who placed the Deer Stalker hat in our collective connection with Sherlock Holmes, Conan-Doyle never mentioned. Also the first stories I owned of Sherlock Holmes contained no illustrations, future purchases did and I believe the illustrations add something yet remove nothing from the experience…

So all in all, the book is a pleasant and engaging read that will be read again… Congratulations Mr. Horowitz.

P.S. I would like it clearly noted that I would certainly never put myself forward as illustrator… I would not be able to manage the lifelike, intrinsic type work of Sidney Paget, you can view some of his work here, The closest I can come to a Sherlock Holmes Illustration is the terrible pun illustrated below…

Sherlock Holmes related post 1...

My poem that was in Wooster Sauce Summer issue,(See here) was included in the Sherlock Holmes Society Journal, Silver Jubilee Supplement... Of which I am obviously over the moon...

The page is reproduced below...

Wodehouse and Holmes Society poem

As a member of the PG Wodehouse Society, and a new member of The Sherlock Holmes Society of London, my loyalties in the annual Cricket match between the societies have become worryingly divided... So much so that I decided to pour all my frustration and worry into my art, and those lovely people at Wooster Sauce, have published it for me... It is hopefully going to appear in the Winter edition of the Sherlock Holmes Journal as well.

Hope it is enjoyed by all:

Sherlock Holmes

Although I have yet to see Guy Ritchie’s version of Sherlock Holmes, I have recently begun to re-read the Sherlock Holmes Stories and Novels and I believe the fact that this movie put the exploits of Holmes and Watson before the public again, is the reason why.

My first exposure of the world’s greatest detective was as a young man watching the Baker Street Boys on CBBC and also reading the Arthur stories written by Alan Coren. I then remember the series starring Jeremy Brett, but I didn’t explore the literary side of Holmes until I was 20 years of age and loved to read the stories once I started. As I said at the beginning I’ve recently started to re-read them which indicates there has been a Gap, and there has been an inexplicably large gap that I needed the help of Mr Guy Ritchie to alleviate.

Over the festive period I began with Hound of the Baskervilles, followed by the Stories in the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and I have recently finished The Sign of Four. I shall now read the stories in the Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes and probably take a break after that, but for not too long of a period.

One thing that has struck me whilst reading the volumes is there always appears to be a fire burning in the rooms of 22IB Baker Street and also the copious amounts of tobacco consumed in the same residence. I can calculate, using the Sherlock Holmes method no doubt, that the stories of Sherlock Holmes tend to be set during cold weather and that both he and Watson were heavy smokers.

I mention this because, when I read the stories I always feel that I should be sitting next to an open fire with cigar to get the full effect. The recent Cold Spell we’ve had would seem to be the perfect place to do this except there are, of course, problems which present themselves, 1) We do not have an open fire, 2) When I do have one of my occasional cigars (Special occasions and celebrations only) I’m sent outside to smoke it so that I would never be next to a fire even if we had one. There is a fire in one of our favourite Howth Pubs, (The Bloody Stream) but thanks to the smoking ban this is not feasible either.

Oh well the stories shall be enjoyed regardless and I will not leave it too long, even though I do not believe that I’ll be going to see the movie out now, wait for it to arrive into my fire-less living room through the television.

Photo of me, Cigar and Sherlock Holmes...