Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon

Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon is an adaptation of The Adventure of the Dancing Men by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The story takes place in WWII England and features a cypher, Professor James Moriarty and the usual assortment of henchmen.

The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes

A Sherlock Holmes story with a slightly different narrative.

Airship Over London

Screenshot from Sherlock Holmes

The airship is propelled by rotor blades above and below the airship. There is a small repeating gun installed for offensive and defensive maneuvers.

This isn't your average Sherlock Holmes story. This video includes autimated rubber dinosaurs and a Kraken. The movie stars Dominic Keating and Gareth David-Lloyd.

The Many Faces of Sherlock Holmes

"I had no idea that such individuals exist outside of stories."
―Dr Watson speaking about Holmes

Sherlock Holmes, Warner Brothers, 2009

I have read several of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories and more recently have watch two Sherlock movies. One the Warner Brothers, 2009 Sherlock Holmes takes place in Victorian England and the other Sherlock, a BBC TV series, is a more of a contemporary depiction of this classic.

Sherlock Holmes, Warner Brothers, 2009: London Bridge

Sherlock Holmes, Warner Brothers, 2009: traditional Holmes depiction

Sherlock Holmes, BBC TV Series, Season 5: opening scene

Sherlock Holmes, BBC TV Series, Season 5: depiction of Sherlock Holmes (a very intense fellow)

A Host of Characters - The Tiger of San Pedro!

"The Tiger of San Pedro! The whole history of the man came back to Sherlock Holmes in a flash. He had made his name as the most lewd and bloodthirsty tyrant that had ever governed any country with a pretense to civilization. Strong, fearless, and energetic, he had sufficient virtue to enable him to impose his odious vices upon a cowering people for ten or twelve years.

His name was a terror through-all Central America. At the end of that time there was a universal rising against him. But he was as cunning as he was cruel, and at the first whisper of coming trouble he had secretly conveyed his treasures aboard a ship which was manned by devoted adherents. It was an empty palace which was stormed by the insurgents next day.

The dictator, his two children, his secretary, and his wealth had all escaped them. From that moment he had vanished from the world, and his identity had been a frequent subject for comment in the European press."

His Last Bow, Arthur Conan Doyle

Professor Moriarty-A Host of Characters

“A touch! A distinct touch!” cried Holmes. “You are developing a certain unexpected vein of pawky humor, Watson, against which I must learn to guard myself. But in calling Moriarty a criminal you are uttering libel in the eyes of the law—and there lie the glory and the wonder of it! The greatest schemer of all time, the organizer of every deviltry, the controlling brain of the underworld, a brain which might have made or marred the destiny of nations—that’s the man! But so aloof is he from general suspicion, so immune from criticism, so admirable in his management and self-effacement, that for those very words that you have uttered he could hale you to a court and emerge with your year’s pension as a solarium for his wounded character. Is he not the celebrated author of The Dynamics of an Asteroid, a book which ascends to such rarefied heights of pure mathematics that it is said that there was no man in the scientific press capable of criticizing it? Is this a man to traduce? Foul-mouthed doctor and slandered professor—such would be your respective roles! That’s genius, Watson. But if I am spared by lesser men, our day will surely come.”

The Valley of Fear, Arthur Conan Doyle

When is a Cipher a Cipher?

Again Holmes flattened out the paper upon his unused plate. I rose and, leaning over him, stared down at the curious inscription, which ran as follows:

"What do you make of it, Holmes?"

"It is obviously an attempt to convey secret information."

"But what is the use of a cipher message without the cipher?"

"In this instance, none at all."

"Why do you say 'in this instance'?"

"Because there are many ciphers which I would read as easily as I do the apocrypha of the agony column: such crude devices amuse the intelligence without fatiguing it. But this is different. It is clearly a reference to the words in a page of some book. Until I am told which page and which book I am powerless."

The Tragedy of Birlstone, The Valley Of Fear, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle