"With Full Approval" [CREE]

We recently reported on a pending series of graphic novels from Tony Lee & Dan Boultwood, titled "The Baker Street Irregulars" ("This Comic Interlude" [3GAB]). Today, we understand that the series has been green-lighted by Franklin Watts / EDGE Books.

The press release makes things sound ominous:
"Sherlock Holmes is dead – and the streets of London are awash with crime. And with no great detective to save them – who will the common people of London turn to?"

We're confident that the authors will be able to answer that question, and as a member of the Baker Street Irregulars, we're glad to see our name being used in a creative and engaging way. And as we understand it, one of our members has been advising Mssrs. Lee & Boultwood.

Even more interesting, Mr. Tony Lee himself has dropped by our Facebook Page to let us know that he got approval to move forward with the project. We'd appreciate it if you stopped over there and pushed that big "Like" button on the top of the page, if you haven't yet. Even better, you can do it right here:





And now, the full press release from http://www.thebakerstreetirregulars.com:

This is the question asked in Sherlock Holmes: The Baker Street Irregulars, a series of four graphic novel stories released by Franklin Watts / EDGE books, a division of Hachette Children’s Books this coming Spring.

Written by New York Times List #1 Bestselling Graphic Novelist and Anthony Horowitz’s ‘Horowitz Graphic Horror’ adaptor Tony Lee, and with art by critically acclaimed ‘Prince Of Baghdad’ and ‘Horowitz Graphic Horror’ artist Dan Boultwood, these four books chronicle the adventures of the Baker Street Irregulars, characters mentioned in Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes books ‘A Study In Scarlet’ and ‘The Sign Of Four’ as they take up the challenge of defending the Victorian city against the forces of evil; facing kidnappers, thieves, murderers and a criminal mastermind believed to be the notorious Moriarty, the man also believed to have killed Sherlock Holmes at the Reichenbach Falls several months earlier.

But the Irregulars aren’t alone – helping them are the reluctant Inspector Lestrade, the mysterious débutante Irene Adler and the steadfast Doctor John Watson, who uses his years of study under Holmes to assist this new generation of crime-solvers.

Set in the three ‘missing years’ between ‘The Adventure Of The Final Problem’ and ‘The Adventure Of The The Empty House’, the series concentrates on Wiggins, the only Baker Street Irregular named in any of Sir Arthur Conan-Doyles books, and his gang of detectives, including the female pickpocket ‘Pockets’, the chimney sweep apprentice ‘Ash’, the Chinatown inventor ‘Chen’ and the butcher’s assistant ‘Tiny’. Alongside the Irish Wolfhound ‘Fluffy’ and their mysterious first client ‘Eliza’, they find themselves in a variety of adventures that fans of the genre of any age can enjoy.

In the last few years there have been a multitude of child-friendly Sherlock Holmes spin-off books available, but these stories of the Baker Street Irregulars are unique; in addition to the fact that they are told in a graphical comic format, for one of the first times ever they are ‘canonical’ within the Sherlock Holmes universe, with perhaps the most acclaimed Sherlock Holmes expert alive today, Leslie S. Klinger coming on board as consulting expert for all four stories.

The editor of countless award winning academic books on Sherlock Holmes, including the ‘New Annotated Sherlock Holmes’ and the ten volume ‘Sherlock Holmes Reference Library’, Leslie S. Klinger is so respected in the industry that even the makers of the Sherlock Holmes movies starring Robert Downey, Jr and Jude Law have consulted his advice. And with Leslie involved, The Baker Street Irregulars moves from a simple series to a storytelling event that every self respecting ‘Sherlockian’ will want on their bookshelf.

With four stories, ‘The Adventure Of The Missing Detective’, ‘The Adventure Of The Phantom Of Drury Lane’, ‘The Adventure Of The Charge Of The Old Brigade’ and ‘The Adventure Of The Family Reunion’ released in March 2011, Sherlock Holmes: The Baker Street Irregulars is a series for both reluctant and confident readers of all ages.

What do you think? does this interest you? Will you be placing an order?

"The Younger Brother of...Walter" [BRUC]

Last year, we celebrated a landmark event: the 150th anniversary of the birth of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Now in 2010, we have another sesquicentennial to highlight: the 150th anniversary of the birth of famed illustrator Sidney Paget.

Paget's influence cannot be underestimated, as he gave Sherlock Holmes life through the visual medium. His illustrations were the first - and likely the most impressionable - images of Holmes that many readers saw, as they helped to visually tell the stories in the Strand Magazine. To many, just as Basil Rathbone is held in the mind as the definitive Holmes of film, Paget's Holmes is the definitive Holmes of illustrations.

And now to celebrate the anniversary of the birth of this influential artist, the Toronto Public Library is holding a virtual exhibit titled Sidney Paget: Iconic Illustrator of Sherlock Holmes. The online exhibit is truly well done, as it takes the visitor through various displays and highlights Paget's career and non-Sherlockian work - work that inspired Conan Doyle to collaborate with Paget on other projects such as The Tragedy of the Korasko and Rodney Stone (both seen below).

  

In addition to his non-Sherlockian work, there is also non-Doylean work that the TPL calls out, such as other detective stories and current events in illustrated newspapers. But the images that struck us as the most interesting are those that show Paget's work on Sherlock Holmes spilling over into other illustrations. Here are two that could simply be Sherlock Holmes wearing a bad toupee:

  

We highly recommend checking out the full exhibit. And if that captures your interest, the Toronto Public Library has a full listing of all of their virtual exhibits to date. Included therein are two that you might be particularly interested in:

• A Case of Considerable Interest: An exhibition celebrating the 35th anniversary of the Arthur Conan Doyle Collection of the Toronto Public Library
• Footprints of the Hound: Celebrating the centenary of return of Sherlock Holmes in The Hound of the Baskervilles and the 30th anniversary of the Arthur Conan Doyle Collection.

Related items:

    

"I Found Myself at the Fall of the Reichenbach" [FINA]

For Sherlock Holmes enthusiasts, other than Baker Street in London, there is one location mentioned in the Canon that can be considered Holmesian holy land: the Reichenbach Falls in Meirengen, Switzerland.

And while some may have had the opportunity to go as part of an organized event (the Sherlock Holmes Society of London held an official trip in 2005 called Making a Beeline for Switzerland), most of us have only had a chance to read about travels to and celebrations at the Falls.

Here's an added opportunity to view a bit of the scene, from a Swiss railway journeys documentary. A tip of the deerstalker goes to Karen Murdock (aka "May Blunder" on the Hounds of the Internet), who discovered this video.

Have you ever visited the Reichenbach Falls or Meirengen? What were your personal impressions? Or perhaps your're planning a trip. Please leave a comment below and share your story.