Sherlockian Sojourns #25: 'London's Exalted Circles (and Squares)'

It was time to visit some of the London Sherlockian sites that I had previously missed, or been unaware of until the introduction of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London’s ‘The Gazetteer’. My focus was on two stories, ‘The Noble Bachelor’ and ‘The Second Stain’.

Catching the tube to Leicester Square, then to Russell Square, and passing a blue plaque to Conan Doyle’s friend, JM Barrie (with whom he co-wrote the operetta ‘Jane Annie’ for the Savoy Opera, and who wrote one of the first Sherlock Holmes parodies), I made my way to the nearby Great Ormond Street (‘Great Orme Street) where I took photos of a possible location of Mrs Warren’s lodging house in ‘The Red Circle’ with its mysterious lodger, and the building opposite where the denouement of the story takes place.

A fifteen minute walk, past a blue plaque for Richard D’Oyly Carte (who commissioned ‘Jane Annie’) and Russell Square where John met Mike Stamford in ‘Sherlock: A Study in Pink’, and I found myself at Gordon Square, for the first stop on an out-of-order visiting of the sites of ‘The Noble Bachelor’. Number 226 (which does not exist) was where Mr. and Mrs. Moulton had taken lodgings after Hatty left her wedding breakfast.  

    

 

A ten minute walk past the telephone boxes seen in ‘Sherlock: The Lying Detective’ and I found myself a few steps away from the closed ‘Speedy’s Sandwich Bar & Café’, catching the Underground from Euston Square, changing at the Victorian platforms of Baker Street, reaching Bond Street. From here a short walk brought me to Grosvenor Square, where ‘Grosvenor Mansions’, the residence of jilted bridegroom Lord St Simon.

On the other side of the Square, was where Isadora Klein lived in 'The Three Gables', in ‘one of the finest corner houses of the West End’. #48 has been identified by scholars as the Klein residence, where Holmes and Watson travelled to get recompense for the death of the late Douglas Maberley.

      

Returning to the other side of the Square, and a further ten minutes walk, past Brook Street (where Percy Trevelyan had his practice in ‘The Resident Patient’) brought me to St. George’s Church, Mayfair, the church where Hatty Doran married Lord St Simon and where she was approached by her first husband Francis Moulton.

 

Five minutes later I was at Oxford Circus and catching the Victoria Line to Green Park, and another short walk to Berkley Square, where according to Watson in ‘The Illustrious Client’, General De Merville lived at number 104. It was also here where Kitty Winter attempted to persuade his daughter Violet, to break off her engagement to Baron Gruner. Number 3 has been identified by scholars as the true location of the De Merville residence.

Making my way back to Piccadilly, I turned right onto St James's Street, where a short distance down is the former site of Boodle’s Gentleman’s Club, Langdale Pike’s Club in ‘The Three Gables’.

Continuing down St. James’ Street, I continued onto Pall Mall, passing two possible Diogenes Clubs - #30 & #107  (see ‘Mycroft’s Rails’ for more details), until I reached Oceanic House, the shipping office of the Adelaide-Southampton line “which stands at the end of Pall Mall”, visited by Holmes in ‘The Abbey Grange’. 

 

   

 

Taking a slight detour due to ‘West End Live 2021’ taking place in Trafalgar Square and closing some walkways, I made my way towards The Strand, then down Craven Street, the site of Mexborough Private Hotel where the Stapletons stayed in ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’ when ‘dogging’ Sir Henry in London.   

 

Passing the ‘Sherlock Holmes Public House’, I made my way to the Corinthia Metropole Hotel, another possible location for the Northumberland Hotel in ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’, which was also visited by Mr. Melas in ‘The Greek Interpreter’ and stayed at by Francis Moulton in ‘The Noble Bachelor’.

 

At this point the heavens opened, so I sheltered in a nearby bookshop for around half-an-hour. Rain subsided, I made my way to the Victoria Embankment, reaching Richmond Terrace, the real-life ‘Whitehall Terrace’, the home of Trelawney Hope in ‘The Second Stain’ from where the document went missing and made a miraculous reappearance.  The terrace is not accessible internally but can be viewed from the adjoining footpath which runs between it and The Ministry of Defence

Reaching Whitehall, I walked a short distance to Downing Street, where Lord Bellinger, Prime Minister, resided in ‘The Second Stain’.  Security was out in force, so I took a photo from a distance. However, I had previously got some better shots from the Foreign Office (‘Mycroft’s Rails’).

 

Walking along King Charles Street, past the door from ‘The Naval Treaty’, I made my way to Horse Guards Road, and the HM Treasury building, whose courtyard appears in ‘Enola Holmes’ (2020), where Enola avoids Sherlock & Mycroft.  Unfortunately there was no public access, so I had to take a rather ineffectual photo through a locked gate.

 

 

Continuing onto Parliament Square and then Victoria Street, Great Smith Street, Great Peter Street, then Gayfere Street, named ‘Godolphin Street’ by Watson in ‘The Second Stain’. ‘16 Godolphin Street’, was the home of the international spy Eduardo Lucas. Lucas was murdered by his wife in the front room. Under the carpet was a secret hiding place which at one stage held the document. 

 

 

It was then a short walk back to Westminster Underground Station, catching the tube to Earl’s Court for my evening’s entertainment, a comic musical tribute to another famous detective, ‘Express G&S’, which to complete the circle of the day was based on the music of the Savoy Operas.

Sherlockian Sojourns #24: ‘The Severn Valley Solution'

Having watched ‘Enola Holmes’, I was interested in what railway had been used for filming. Checks revealed it to be the Severn Valley Railway. Further checking revealed that three other Sherlockian productions had also been filmed on the railway (as had the BBC dramatisation of ‘The Box of Delights’ which enchanted me as a child, and which I rewatch as a Christmas tradition). A sojourn was therefore necessary.

I spent the previous day in Gloucester, where Covid-recovery plans meant that tours of Gloucester Cathedral Crypt (where part of ‘Sherlock: The Abominable Bride' was filmed) were still cancelled. However, I managed to see the parts featured in the ‘Harry Potter’ films, and in ‘Doctor Who’ story, ‘Fugitive of the Judoon’. Having taken photos outside the cathedral where ‘Fugitive’ and Tenth Doctor story, ‘The Next Doctor’, were filmed, I made my way to the Docks where ‘Without A Clue' filmed, before catching a coach to my base for the next few days, Hereford.

The next day I made my way by train from Hereford Station (where Holmes and Lestrade arrived to visit the younger McCarthy in Herfordshire Gaol in 'The Boscombe Valley Mystery') to Kidderminster, via Droitwich Spa. On arrival it was a short walk to the Kidderminster SVR station. Having shown by booking reference, I was given a wristband for the particular service that I had booked on. Having half-an-hour until my train left, I took photos of the station, and bought two guides to the railway. Kidderminster Station appears as ‘Basilwether Station’ in ‘Enola Holmes’, where Enola caught the train to London in search of her mother, and also met Tewkesbury for the first time.

 

Moving to the platform, I walked up to the engine and was delighted to find out that my train for the day was being pulled by GWR 2857 which featured in ‘Enola Holmes’. 

 

Finding my table for the day (L in Coach 8, just behind the engine), I settled in for the first ride of the day. The first stop was Bewdley Station, which featured as ‘Aspen Station’ in 'The Seven-Percent Solution', and as ‘Musborough Junction’ in ‘The Box of Delights’ (where Kay changes trains and meets Cole Hawking’s for the first time). (It also appears as part of stock footage used in ‘Doctor Who’ story, ‘Black Orchid’) Not getting off here, I took an ineffectual photo through the window.

 

The next stop was Arley Station, where I alighted. The station appeared as ‘Ferndell Station’ in ‘Enola Holmes’, where our heroine meets her brothers, Sherlock and Mycroft, off their train. It also featured as ‘Tavistock Station' in ‘Silver Blaze’, a 1977 TV dramatisation, starring Christopher Plummer & Thorley Walters. It was here that Holmes & Watson alighted on their way to Kings Pyland stables. Finally, it is ‘Condicote Station’ in ‘The Box of Delights’, where Kay meets Hawking’s again. It is also where Abner Brown sits on a train platform bench in the final episode.

    EH        SB

        BOD      BOD

Photos taken, I made my way to the nearby Severn Way, following the river back towards Bewdley. After ¾ miles, I reached the Victoria Bridge which my train had gone over twenty-five minutes before. This bridge is where Holmes pushes Watson’s new wife, Mary, from a train in ‘Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows’. The bridge is also featured in ‘The Seven Percent Solution’ as a border crossing checkpoint, smashed through by Holmes’ train. It is also here that Enola and Tewkesbury jump from their train as it crosses a bridge. However, a stonework bridge was CGI’d over the actual Victoria Bridge. Due to bend of the river it was difficult to get a good shot of the bridge.

 

  

Retracing my steps, I continued walking along the Severn Way, for a total of 3 miles, until after around an hour, I reached Highley Station, which features the SVR Engine Shed Museum, containing a number of locomotives. These included three used in Sherlockian productions – LMS Stanier 8F 48773 and LMS Ivatt Class 2 46443, which pulled the Pasha and Holmes’ trains respectively in ‘The Seven Percent Solution’; and GWR Small Prairie 4566 which was Holmes and Watson’s train in ‘Silver Blaze’ (and also appears in the final episode of ‘The Box of Delights’ and in ‘Black Orchid’).

 

    

Making my way to Highley Station, I caught 2857 to Bridgnorth (via Hampton Loade). Due to a change in timetable since I booked, and the train arriving 5 minutes late to Bridgnorth, I cancelled my plan to walk back to the Oldbury Viaduct, where Holmes manages to board the Pasha’s train and finds Lola (the walk was 15 minutes each way and the final train back left promptly in half-an-hour’s time. However, I would have travelled over it twice. I therefore stayed on the platform, buying a postcard in the shop of 2857 going over Victoria Bridge.

The train was on time, and slowly wended its way back through the valley. At Bewdley, we were ahead of time, so I had time to take several photos out of the window, the task made easier by the fact that the train was not as packed as it had been at the start of the day.

  SPS        BOD

  

BO

 

Back at Kidderminster, I had to run for my connection, catching it with seconds to spare. The next day, I travelled home via Hay-on-Wye where I purchased several Sherlockian books.