Monday 27 August 2018

Sherlockian Sojourns #15: Edinburgh

Arthur Conan Doyle was born on 22nd May 1859, at 11 Picardy Place, Edinburgh, Scotland, the second of seven children. However, possibly due to his not becoming famous until leaving the city, his Edinburgh connection is not one that is highlighted in the city, with JK Rowling and her creation Harry Potter, seemingly being trumpeted in every corner. Even the city's Writers Museum, celebrates only Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson. Having gone up to Edinburgh for the Fringe, I decided to visit a number of Doylean sites. The second of my three days in Edinburgh was deemed 'Conan Doyle Day'.
This began with my undertaking 'The Real Sherlock Holmes Walking Tour'. This is run by Toby Virgo, and tells the story not only of Conan Doyle but of Dr. Joseph Bell ('the Real Sherlock Holmes'). The tour started on the Royal Mile, where we were given an overview of Edinburgh's history, before walking a short distance to the University of Edinburgh Medical School, where Conan Doyle was a student from 1876. 

 
It was here that he met two men who influenced the choice of his future novel heroes.The first was Professor Rutherford, whose Assyrian beard, booming voice and broad chest, inspired Professor George Edward Challenger. It was also where he met Dr. Joseph Bell, Professor of Surgery, whose amazing deductions on his patients and their diseases germinated the idea of a detective using the same methods.After a quick stop for a group selfie, we moved on to the next stop.





23 George Square represented Doyle's penultimate Edinburgh address, moved to in 1877. It was separated into three residences, the basement and the upper floor having other occupants. To distinguish them from the main apartments these were deemed 23A & 23B, possibly inspiring 221B. The rent was paid by a Doyle family friend, Dr. Bryan Charles Waller, who had a joint consulting room and study in the house, which Doyle could use in his absence, but had to vacate when Waller had business there, much as Watson had to in the early days of his friendship with Holmes. After another selfie, we moved on to our final stop.




 The final stop was the Old Infirmary, where Dr. Bell ran regular surgeries with Conan Doyle as his clerk. It was here that Conan Doyle first observed Bell's deductive abilities that later inspired Holmes. Dr. Bell observed the way a person moved.  The walk of a sailor varied vastly from that of a solider.  If he identified a person as a sailor he would look for  any tattoos that might assist him in knowing where their travels had taken them.   He trained himself to listen for small differences in his patient’s accents to help him identify where they were from.  Bell studied the hands of his patients because calluses or other marks could help him determine their occupation.  (Click here for a more detailed example, beginning 'But the most notable of the characters whom I met...')


 
 

Thanking Toby, I left and caught a bus to York Place, which opens into Picardy Place, due to roadworks taking place, the birthplace was inaccessible and also the statue of Sherlock Holmes that usually stands outside has been removed. However, the Conan Doyle Public House remains opposite the site  (but even this was briefly renamed at the start of the year).



Just around the corner was St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Cathedral where Conan Doyle was baptised.


It was time for a Fringe show so I made my way back to central Edinburgh, passing 'The Waverley Hotel' where in October 1900, Conan Doyle stayed when he ran for election in Edinburgh as an MP, in favour of retaining Ireland within the United Kingdom.




Having enjoyed a sketch-show and eaten my lunch, I made my way to the Pleasance Courtyard for an hour of comic songs from Flo & Joan.  Returning to 23 George Square, I began a tour of Conan Doyle's Edinburgh homes, making for 'The Meadows', a public park since the 1700s. Skirting the side of the park, my second stop was 15 Lonsdale Terrace. This was Conan Doyle's final Edinburgh address, which he moved to in 1881.


 
However, it is a nearby road, Lauriston Gardens that has a canonical connection, being moved to 'just off the Brixton Road' in London for the first crime scene (3 Lauriston Gardens) that we see Holmes and Watson investigate, in the novel 'A Study in Scarlet'. 



Returning to The Meadows, I cut across where after a short walk, I reached 2 Argyle Park Terrace. The Doyle family moved here in 1875. This property previously had a bow window, as Watson claims 221b did in 'The Beryl Coronet', when he stood in it to watch the troubled approach of Alexander Holder. This would have been improbable for Baker Street at that time.


However at this point, things went a bit wrong. The heavens opened and it was necessary for me to cut short my tour with several stops left. 

The next morning, having breakfasted, I caught a bus to Goods' Corner, and moving down Nether Liberton Lane, I reached The Conan Doyle Medical Centre.





I then returned to the main road and spent around half-an-hour desperately trying to find my next location, until I finally found it was only 2 minutes walk further on from the Medical Centre. In the mid to late 1860s, Doyle was sent to live at Liberton Bank House seemingly to protect him from the negative influences of his alcoholic father and, no doubt, to facilitate his attendance at the nearby Newington Academy. At Liberton Bank he was in the care of Mary Burton, a trailblazing educational and social reformer, the first woman Governor of Heriot-Watt College and a leading advocate of women's suffrage.




In 2009, a sycamore tree outside the property, which had been felled because of rotten roots, was used by Edinburgh-based luthier Steve Burnett, to make a violin, named 'The Sherlock Violin'. In 2010 it was donated to the University of Edinburgh's Musical Instrument Collection. The Collection is displayed at St. Cecilia's Hall five minutes from my accommodation, but when I visited later in the day, the violin was not on display.

Catching the bus back, I alighted at Newington Road, and made my way down to 3 Sciennes Place, where Doyle rejoined his parents on leaving Liberton Bank House, living there until 1875.




Retracing my steps, I walked along Newington Road, until I reached Surgeons Hall Museum, which exhibits a letter from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle crediting Dr Joseph Bell, as the main inspiration for the character of Sherlock Holmes.




It was time for some shows, but having a long break in the middle of the day, I made my way back to the area around Lauriston Gardens. First stop was The Moriarty Bar, Lothian Road , which when I last visited it a few years ago, had a Reichenbach Falls mural in the main bar to commemorate its villainous namesake. Unfortunately, this seemed to have been painted over.




On my way back into the City Centre, I popped into a bookshop on Lauriston Place, where I managed to obtain a copy of 'The Strand Magazine' - August 1895 (Vol 10, Issue 8), which included the Conan Doyle story, 'How the Brigadier Took the Field Against the Marshal Millefleurs'. I also passed The Lauriston Building, a hospital where Dr. Joseph Bell worked.


This ended my tour of Conan Doyle-related buildings. A few more Fringe shows, and the next morning, it was time to make my way home.

 







Fringe Benefits 2018 - The Awards

2018 AWARDS

Comedy

#3: Lost Voice Guy - Inspiration Porn      (Gilded Balloon - Debating Hall)
#2: Flo & Joan - Alive on Stage     (Pleasance Courtyard - Cabaret Bar)
#1: Raymond and Mr. Timkins Revue - Ham     (Pleasance Dome - King Dome)



Improvisation

#3: Bad Clowns/Beach Hunks/Crizards/Tracy's Leaving Party - Sketch Thieves    (Cabaret Voltaire - Main Room)
#2: Very Serious People - The Improvised Panto   (Paradise in the Vault)
#1: Degrees of Error - Murder, She Didn't Write    (Pleasance Courtyard - Pleasance Beyond)




Magic

#3: Ben Hanlin - 50  (Pleasance Dome - King Dome)
#2: John Lenahan - Up Close   (Free Sisters - The Wee Room)
#1: Colin Cloud - Psycho(Logical)    (Pleasance Courtyard - The Grand)



Plays

#3: Mark Curry/Peter Duncan/Janet Ellis/Peter Purves/Tim Vincent - Once Seen on Blue Peter   (Assembly Rooms - Ballroom)
#2: John Bett/Sylvester McCoy/Robert Picardo - A Joke   (Assembly Rooms - Ballroom) 
#1: Jeffrey Holland - ...And This Is My Friend, Mr. Laurel    (Pleasance Courtyard - Upstairs)


Saturday 25 August 2018

Fringe Benefits 2018 - Day Three


DAY THREE

…And This Is My Friend, Mr. Laurel – Upstairs, Pleasance Courtyard  (Venue #33)    KPS Productions  [60 mins]

Hi-de-Hi's Jeffrey Holland plays Stan Laurel in this self-penned (co-written with the award-winning playwright Gail Louw) one man show, which finds Stan at Oliver Hardy's bedside after a stroke. Over the 60 minutes he muses on their careers, snippets from their act, their multiple marriages and his own personal tragedies. Very touching and a new insight into a comedy great.   

 



The Vanishing Man – Pleasance Two, Pleasance Courtyard   (Venue #33)  SEDA & Glynis Henderson Productions  [60 mins]

A time-hopping, mind bending examination of what really happens when a man in full view simply disappears. Not just a magic show, it's the story of a magic trick: the greatest ever performed, bringing a new meaning to audience participation. Then like any good magic show, all expectations are confounded at the end. Strangely affecting.    

 



Murder, She Didn’t Write: An Improvised Murder Mystery – Pleasance Beyond, Pleasance Courtyard  (Venue #33)   Degrees of Error & Something for the Weekend    [60mins]

My second impro show of the Fringe. The title says it all - a country house style murder mystery based on audience suggestions. The six performers - a victim (chosen by an audience member), 4 suspects and a detective - were amazing, with puns galore and frequent flashbacks adding to the hilarious story of the murder of a returning officer in a local election where each candidate represented a different preserve. Far and away the best impro show I've ever seen at the Fringe !  

 



Ben Hanlin: 50 – King Dome, Pleasance Dome  (Venue #23)    [50 mins]

TV magician, Ben Hanlin, presented the 50 greatest magic tricks ever performed, in 50 minutes and in his trademark cheeky style. There was hardly time to gasp at one miracle before the next one. A show featuring the majority of tricks that you'll see at all other Fringe magic shows. Magical.

 



The Raymond and Mr. Timkins Revue: Ham - King Dome, Pleasance Dome (Venue #23)  Get Comedy   [50 mins]

In their Edinburgh debut, comedians' comedians, Raymond and Mr. Timkins, gave us the cleverest and stupidest show you could ever imagine. The pioneers and Kings of manic music-based prop comedy, my sides ached from laughing so much. I have to see them again, preferably as soon as possible. If you get the chance to see one of their shows, you won't regret going. Cannot recommend enough. 

+





Lost Voice Guy: Inspiration Porn - Gilded Balloon Teviot - Debating Hall    (Venue #14)   Gag Reflex   [60 mins]

'Britain's Got Talent' 2018 winner, Lost Voice Guy, has found himself having to add extra date after extra date, meaning that I managed to get a ticket. The hall was packed, and LVG was his usual self-deprecating BGT self, but with added swearing and more adult material. A brilliant end to my Fringe, and I got a photo with him after. 


Friday 24 August 2018

Fringe Benefits 2018 - Day Two


DAY TWO

Real Sherlock Holmes Walking Tour - Outside Cigar Box, High St    (Venue #215)   [90 mins]

A very thorough tour of Conan Doyle's Edinburgh, taking in one of his homes, the University Medical School, and the hospital where he first saw the deductive skills of Dr Joseph Bell, all carried out by an expert guide, Toby Virgo.      

 

[For a fuller write-up, click here]




Sketch Thieves -Laughing Horse @ Cabaret Voltaire    (Venue #338)  Will Mars.   [60 mins]

Finding my intended second show - a bio play about John LeMesurier - had been cancelled, I attended another show in the same building. Four sketch groups - Bad Clowns, Beach Hunks, Crizards & Tracy's Leaving Party - first each performed 10 minutes of material, then their riff on one of the other groups' sketches. My favourite was TLP both in their own sketches and in their versions of Beach Hunks' material. The show was expertly compered by Will Mars. Recommended, along with the original - Joke Thieves.

 




Flo & Joan: Alive on Stage – Cabaret Bar, Pleasance Courtyard   (Venue #33)  Avalon    [60 mins]

Comedy songstresses Flo & Joan (real life sisters, Nicola & Rosie) presented another hour of witty songs and banter, with only one song I'd heard before (the previous evening). They even turned the tables on one of their harshest critics. Can't recommend seeing this show when it goes on tour enough!  





Griffin & Jones: Trickorish Allsorts – Liquid Room Warehouse  (Venue #276)   PBH Free Fringe   [60 mins]

Comedy magic double act, Griffin & Jones, pioneers of 'slapdash magic', performed old and new routines to the delight of a select crowd, ending with a straitjacket escape race. Very funny. 

 




John Lenahan: Up Close – The Wee Room, The Free Sisters   (Venue #272)   Ingenious Fools   [60 mins]

Another comedy magician (and voice of 'Red Dwarf's Talkie Toaster), John Lenahan, with 60 minutes of close-up card magic for an audience of 15 in a tiny room. Masterful. 

 


Thursday 23 August 2018

Fringe Benefits 2018 - Day One



After a year off, I am back to the Fringe, for three days this time. 16 shows in 57 hours, reviews below, and Awards to follow.

DAY ONE

Once Seen on Blue Peter – Ballroom, Assembly Rooms (Venue #20)  Cahoots Theatre Company   [60 mins]
 
Starring Mark Curry, Peter Duncan, Janet Ellis & Peter Purves (with brief appearances by Tim Vincent) 60 minutes of reminiscences from the classic children's TV programme, 'backstage at a TV awards show'. Lulu the elephant, Mark knocking the head off a Lego businessman, Noaksie, and Janet freefalling were all referenced. Very enjoyable, and I managed to get Janet, Mark and Peter D to sign one of my precious BP books.

 



A Joke – Ballroom, Assembly Rooms (Venue #20)  Universal Arts and Scene Change Productions  [60 mins]

Written by Dan 'Death Comes to Time' Freeman, and starring Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy and 'Star Trek: Voyager' star Robert Picardo, this play featured an Englishman, an Irishman, and a Scotsman. Why had they been brought together, was it some sort of joke ? A very thought-provoking and funny 60 minutes, and Sylv played the spoons. 




Colin Cloud: Psycho(Logical) - The Grand, Pleasance Courtyard   (Venue #33)  Gag Reflex    [60 mins]

My usual festival must-see, the 'real life Sherlock Holmes' in an impressive and petrifying show. The show started with Cloud locked in a box slowly filling with smoke, and having to psychically indicate to an audience member which one of the 100 keys opened the padlock. The big finish was another coup de theatre, but I won't spoil it here. Highly recommended. 

 


Improvised Panto ! – The Annexe, Paradise in the Vault   (Venue #29)   Very Serious People   [45 mins]

The first of my impro shows, and for once not Sherlockian or Whovian. VSP in their fringe debut presented an entirely improvised pantomime, including songs. Having finally found the hidden venue, we were treated to the tale of Bob from Ottley (near Leeds) who had to find a black cab filled with cash in Monte Carlo, whilst defeating a prostitute from Hull. Very good.

 
 

Rachel Parris' Musical Comedy Club – King Dome, Pleasance Dome  (Venue #23)   Live Nation   [80 mins]

Rachel Parris ('The Mash Report') presented her musical guests - Flo & Joan (amazing), Harry & Chris (proving that comedy rap-jazz is 'a thing') and Pippa Evans (exquisite). Rachel compered, also singing songs, including her tribute to one of the epic songs from 'The Greatest Showman'. The show ended with a singalong of 'Hold On' (Wilson Phillips), with all the performers, which continued as we filed out. An excellent end to the day !