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1/9/2016 Best Sherlock Holmes original stories GQ.co.uk
ENTERTAINMENT / BOOKS
Six Sherlock stories that are better

than the Christmas special

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3 comments
BY MAX WILLIAMS 06 JANUARY 16
6 January is Sherlock Holmes's fictional birthday - and with The Abominable

Bride scoring the highest festive audience we clearly haven't tired of Baker
Street's finest. But while millions enjoy the exploits of Benedict Cumberbatch
and Martin Freeman, when did you last read Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's original
stories? Dark, funny and ingenious, these miniature masterpieces are among
the most iconic in literature. Here are six of the best.
A Scandal in Bohemia
The first Sherlock Holmes short story - the detective had already appeared in
two novels - is notable for the appearance of Irene Adler, a rare female
character of the series and the woman who famously beat him. It isn't
conventional mystery, more of an assignment. Several years ago the lovestruck
King of Bohemia sent a number of compromising letters and a photograph to
Adler. Now engaged to another woman, the King requires Holmes to recover the
potentially embarrassing evidence. The great detective adopts several disguises
to spy on Adler at her house and is even a witness to a secret marriage. He
thinks the photograph can be swiftly recovered - but a nasty surprise awaits.
Best Holmes deduction: Disguised as a clergyman, Holmes stages a false fire

alarm at Adler's house to discover the hidden photograph. In the event of a fire,
a person automatically checks on their most valued possession.
Solution: Adler realises Holmes's trick and tracks him to Baker Street to
confirm her suspicions. She and her new husband promptly flee the country. A
couple of hours later Holmes, Watson and the King arrive to find no Adler and
no photograph - only a letter from Adler to Holmes explaining her escape.
The Red Headed League

Rex Features
An early pioneer of what became a classic criminal trick: create an elaborate,

often extraordinary cover story to distract from the more mundane crime.
(Agatha Christie used this device in The ABC Murders, and Doyle recycled it for
The Three Garridebs.) Here the literally red herring is the job offered to flame-
headed pawnbroker Jabez Wilson: sit in an empty office and copy out the
Encyclopædia Britannica word-for-word. Why? Due to the bequest of an
American millionaire, instructing easy, well-remunerated employment be
offered to men who, like himself, were red of hair. For weeks Wilson diligently
copies out the 'As' until one morning he finds the office locked and a sign
stating the Red Headed League is dissolved. Wilson starts asking question but
can find no trace of the organization ever existing - despite it paying him £4 a
week to copy letters from a book. The baffled pawnbroker takes his case to
Holmes, who quickly deduces foul play is afoot.
Best Holmes deduction: Immediately noticing his client "has done a

considerable amount of writing lately". How? Wilson's shiny right cuff (from
moving against the paper) and "the smooth patch near the [left] elbow where
he rests it upon the desk."
Solution: The Red-Headed League is a ruse to remove Wilson from his

pawnshop, allowing a pair of thieves, one of whom is moonlighting as Wilson's
assistant, to tunnel into the vault of the neighbouring bank. Holmes
apprehends the criminals on the night of their heist.
The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle
Rex Features
The original Christmas special. In December a man carrying a dead goose gets
into an altercation on Tottenham Court Road. He flees, leaving behind the goose
and his battered old hat . Both are taken to Holmes. After Holmes has
examined the hat and made some remarkable deductions about its wearer -
"his wife has ceased to love him" - a brilliant blue jewel is discovered inside the
dead bird: the recently stolen carbuncle of the Countess of Morcar. Holmes
tracks down the hat owner (the goose was labelled "For Mrs Henry Baker"), who
appears oblivious a priceless stone was hidden within his Christmas dinner.
Holmes and Watson follow a trail back to the goose salesman - but they aren't
the only ones asking questions.
Best Holmes deduction: The hat monologue is rightly celebrated as Holmes

outlines a ridiculous number of hypotheses, some more far fetched than others.
The neatest? The numerous sweat marks upon the lining betray the wearer's
poor physical condition. And the wife? Only an indifferent spouse could allow
her husband to sport such an ill-kept piece of headwear.
Solution: The carbuncle was stolen by a hotel attendant named James Ryder.
Terrified of arrest Ryder visited his sister, an egg and poultry supplier, and feeds
the stone to one of her geese. However, the incompetent Ryder accidently takes
the wrong goose, and realises the Carbuncle-filled bird has gone to the
salesman. There he encounters Holmes and quickly confesses his crime. The
detective lets Ryder go; it's Christmas after all.
The Adventure of the Speckled Band
Rex Features
An exotic chiller, frequently cited as the best Holmes story by connoisseurs and
Conan Doyle himself . The wealthy and recently engaged Helen Stoner lives
with her eccentric stepfather Dr Roylett. A cheetah and a baboon roam the
grounds: Roylett has an unusual taste in pets. Two years ago Helen's twin
sister, Julia, died in mysterious circumstances. Sleeping in a locked bedroom,
Julia had spoken of hearing strange whistles in the dead of night. Later, in the
middle of a gale, Helen is woken by her sister's scream. She finds Julia petrified,
crying "It was the band! The speckled band!" before expiring seemingly from
sheer terror. Now Helen has moved into her sister's old room. And one night
she hears the sound of a low whistle... Can Sherlock Holmes save the second
sister from the dreadful fate of the first?
Best Holmes deduction: The new bell-rope beside Helen's bed doesn't work.
It hangs above a ventilator that leads to Dr Roylett's bedroom. Holmes quickly
establishes the significance of these singular points (see below for how).
Solution: The speckled band is a swamp adder trained by Dr Roylett. He fed the
deadly snake through the ventilator, hoping it would climb down the bell-rope
and bite Julia. The whistles were Roylett summoning the snake back. (It took
several nights until the snake bit the intended victim.) Now the doctor is using
the same trick on Julia in fear of losing her fortune. Holmes and Watson lie in
wait for the reptile and drive it back into Roylett's room where it bites the
doctor. Poetic justice of the highest order.
Silver Blaze
Rex Features
This beautifully plotted little mystery is one of Doyle's most satisfying. Famed
racehorse Silver Blaze has disappeared on the eve of a race. His trainer is found
dead on the moor, knife in hand, head shattered by a savage blow. Questions
abound. A local gambler named Fitzroy-Simpson was seen hanging around the
stables on the afternoon of the theft - but how was the stranger able to drug the
stable boy's curried mutton? Why have several sheep recently gone lame? Most
famously, what of the curious incident of the dog in the night-time, the dog
supposed to guard Silver Blaze? The dog did nothing in the night-time. That, of
course, was the curious incident, one which holds the secret to the case.
Best Holmes deduction: Realising the silent dog means the thief must be
someone familiar to the animal. Thus it did not bark an alarm.
Solution: The horse thief is the murdered trainer, John Straker. He took Silver
Blaze to the moor in order to maim the race favourite and win a fortune betting
against it. (He practiced on the sheep.) Who killed Straker? Why the horse of
course, striking out with a frightened hoof as Straker reached for its leg. A rival
owner then discovered the horse on the moor; Holmes ensures its safe return
for the race.
The Final Problem
One of the shorter stories casts the longest shadow. For Holmes faces Professor
Moriarty, the Napoleon of crime. After a long game of cat-and-mouse
(occurring entirely off-stage), Holmes at last has the upper hand. Moriarty and
his vast operation will shortly be arrested. The Professor warns Holmes their
destruction shall be mutual, and after Moriarty evades the police Holmes and
Watson retreat to Switzerland, staying nearby the Reichenbach Falls....
Essentially a fast-paced thriller, Doyle wrote The Final Problem to kill off his
hero by pitting him against a suitable nemesis. Oddly, Moriarty appears only to
Holmes, never to Watson (and thus the reader). Their famous meeting is
recounted by the detective, and Watson only catches brief glimpses of a distant
figure at Victoria Station and the Reichenbach. Thus the often posited theory:
Moriarty never existed, and is merely a figment of Holmes's imagination.
(Either deliberate or drug-induced.) Even if you ignore this surprisingly

plausible theory, it is remarkable that arguably the most famous villain in
literature sprung from only a handful of pages. And we never truly meet him at
all.
Best Holmes deduction: Sherlock is on the run throughout - no time for

deductions! Some great comebacks, though. Moriarty: "All that I have to say
has already crossed your mind". Holmes: "Then possibly my answer has crossed
yours."
Solution: Moriarty tracks Holmes to Switzerland, and lures Watson from the
waterfall with a fake letter. Upon realising the deception, Watson rushes back -
only to find a goodbye letter from his friend. Two sets of footprints at the cliff
edge suggest the archenemies fought and plunged into the waterfall together,
locked in a deadly embrace. (Only Doyle later recanted, revealing Holmes
wriggled free while Moriarty toppled to his death.)
Follow Max Williams on Twitter @maxwykeham

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223 shares
3 comments
2 Comments Sort by Top
Add a comment...
Scott Monty ·
Principal at Scott Monty Strategies, LLC
Excellent suggestions. You could have
extended that to quite a few more of
the original stories as well.
Like · Reply · 20 hrs
Vs Bz
Amazing
Like · Reply · Jan 6, 2016 5:02pm
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1/9/2016 Best

Six Sherlock stories that are better

BY MAX WILLIAMS 06 JANUARY 16

6 January is Sherlock Holmes's fictional birthday - and with The Abominable

Best Holmes deduction: Disguised as a clergyman, Holmes stages a false fire

The Red Headed League

An early pioneer of what became a classic criminal trick: create an elaborate,

Best Holmes deduction: Immediately noticing his client "has done a

Solution: The Red-Headed League is a ruse to remove Wilson from his

The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle

Best Holmes deduction: The hat monologue is rightly celebrated as Holmes

The Adventure of the Speckled Band

The Final Problem

(Either deliberate or drug-induced.) Even if you ignore this surprisingly

Best Holmes deduction: Sherlock is on the run throughout - no time for

Follow Max Williams on Twitter @maxwykeham

2 Comments Sort by Top

Today's Articles On...

Live coverage direct from London Collections Men

Unlikely life lessons from Tim Roth and Kurt

The history of Christmas sex

Why it's unbearably shit to be Labour right now

© Condé Nast UK 2016

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