#bsiweekend

The #BSIWeekend 2015 is in the history books. As usual, it was a reminder of the richness of friendship and fun that are the side effect - and in some cases, the driver - of our interest in Sherlock Holmes. And it is the subject of this episode of I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere.

As you know, the Baker Street Irregulars (and Friends) Weekend is a gathering of some hundrends of interested Sherlockians that is always full of food, fun and friends, and this year was no exception. In fact, this year it coincided with the 125th anniversary of the birth of Christopher Morley, the founder of the BSI, and the 100th anniversary of the publication of The Valley of Fear.

One of the highlights for us was the Lunch of Steele at the Salmagundi Club, honoring the memory of Frederic Dorr< Steele, one of the great illustrators of the Sherlock Holmes stories. Burt has hosted this luncheon for the last 12 years, and he tells us why he decided to bring back the tradition of Morley's Three Hours For Lunch Club under the topic of Steele.

At the Salmagundi Club

There at the club, we enjoyed an intimate setting that allowed us to share a variety of interests and to capture a couple of those legendary stories that aren't documented in writing. We refer, of course, to Peter Blau, who regaled us with a John Bennett Shaw story and an Al Silverstein tale.

Peter Blau, looking forlorn after offering the raffle prize up for auction at the BSI Cocktail Reception.

We also reflected on the associated interests of Sherlockians that brought us to other societies such as the Victorian Military Society, the English Speaking Union and others.

One of the common interests of Sherlockians is comedy. David Stuart Davies has always been a star attraction at comedic efforts at our gatherings. And this year was no different, with Davies doing a one-man rendition of a Goon Show-like interlude called "A Quartet of M's," which we have a short audio clip of within the show. If you'd like to watch the full version, please check out the full video below (recorded with the permission of the BSI's "Wiggins," as you heard in Episode 71).

The investitures this year were nothing short of thrilling, with two very special ones. Kristina Manente of the Baker Street Babes received the investiture "Grace Dunbar," and Emily Miranker is now "Lady Hatty St. Simon." We have audio clips of each of them, including some commentary from her father, Glen Miranker, BSI ("The Origin of Tree Worship").

Kristina Manente, BSI gets her investiture face on

If you'd like to see more photos from the 2015 BSI Weekend, here's a slideshow from our Flickr set.

The Editor's Gas-Lamp for this episode is "Watson's Wound: Real of Phantom?" by Robert Katz, MD, BSI from The Watsonian (Vol. 2, No. 2).

Links

The Three Stooges' Niagara Falls routine

The Amateur Mendicant Society's history From the Lower Vault by Chris Music is now for sale.

Tim Greer won the Morley Montgomery Award for 2014 for the best article in the Baker Street Journal.

A first look and review at Mr. Holmes with Ian McKellen as a 93 year-old retired Sherlock Holmes.

Sherlocked is the official convention of the BBC's Sherlock and it's taking place in London in April 2015.

Filming has wrapped for the Christmas special of Sherlock, with the actors in full Victorian garb.

Many more links, articles and images are available in our Flipboard magazine at bit.ly/FlipSherlock (NEW and improved on the web!) and Scoop.it page, as well as on the The Sherlock Holmes Community on Google+ (still growing, now at over 2,300 members), as well as through our accounts on Facebook, Twitter and  Tumblr.

Please subscribe to us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Stitcher or Spreaker and be kind enough to leave a rating or review for the show. And please tell a friend about us, in any fashion you feel comfortable.

Your thoughts on the show? Leave a comment below, send us an email (ihearofsherlock AT gmail DOT com), call us at (774) 221-READ (7323).

Sponsors

This episode includes three sponsors that deserve your attention:

Wessex Press (check out the new Sherlock Holmes and Conan Doyle in the Newspapers Volume 1)

The Baker Street Journal, where you should get your annual subscription in now to secure all four issues and a very special Christmas Annual about The Seven Per-Cent Solution.

  Mike Whelan is the “Wiggins” of the Baker Street Irregulars and has been such since 1997. He joined us as a guest on I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere first in December 2007 (Episodes 14 and 15).

As a reminder, the Baker Street Irregulars, the literary society dedicated to Sherlock Holmes, was founded in 1934 by Christopher Morley, administered ably from 1940-1960 by Edgar W. Smith, followed by Julian Wolff from 1960-1986 and Tom Stix, Jr. from 1986-1997.

In our conversation with Mike, we touch on both Julian and Tom, both of whom Mike knew. We go behind the scenes at the Regency, where Mike’s first BSI dinner was, as well as on the succession process that he underwent prior to ascending to the top leadership position in the BSI. As one might expect, a new leader brings new vision, and Mike’s included reclaiming the Irregulars’ literary roots, extending a hand internationally and honoring the memory of Conan Doyle.

As any good leader, Mike has been tireless in his efforts to communicate with his stakeholders (in this case the members of the Baker Street Irregulars), doing so through two annual letters. We parsed through the major themes in the 2014 mid-year letter: decentralization, BSI conferences, the next phase of the BSI Trust, and the society’s “soul” - that is, its values, which we think are worth calling out here:

Promote and nurture Grand Game scholarship

Diverse, exceptional membership, not elitist

Kind, welcoming clubbability 

Altruistic volunteerism — giving more than you receive, “society above self” 

Joyful, whimsical environment (see last January’s annual dinner) 

Aspirational, not reactionary 

Inherent modesty versus taking ourselves too seriously

Extremely high standards — never intentionally settle for less 

Fiscally responsible — sufficient funds maintained to accomplish most, if not all, objectives 

Societal and member Sherlockian charitable generosity

  Burt and Scott go on the public record with an intention for the future (it’s up to you, dear listener, to hold us to it!). And Mike gives a preview of what you might expect at the 2015 BSI Weekend.

Finally, we discussed the very handsome Undershaw Set - a limited edition signed by the authors and in a purple slipcase with gold stamping. The proceeds from sales of the sets will go to the Undershaw Preservation Trust, an organization dedicated to preserving and restoring the unique home designed and built by Arthur Conan Doyle. [Editor’s note: we previously covered this news here.]

The Undershaw Set from the Baker Street Irregulars Press

Make sure you tune in to our sponsor reads to hear Scott tell his story about Douglas Wilmer (the subject of the 2014 Baker Street Journal Christmas Annual) that references this famous scene:

  The Editor’s Gas-Lamp comes from the Vol. 4, No. 1 issue in 1949, but is not a Gas-Lamp per se. Instead, it is a poem by Paul McPharlin: “Sweet Auburn,” which puts one of the original Sherlock Holmes stories to verse.

  Links:

BSI Weekend

Scintillation of Scions

The Undershaw Set

Many more links are available in our Flipboard magazine and Scoop.it page, as well as on the The Sherlock Holmes Community on Google+ (with over 2,100 members), as well as through our accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. And of course,  are nice collections of links, articles and images.

  Please subscribe to us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Stitcher or Spreaker and be kind enough to leave a rating or review for the show. And please tell a friend about us, in any fashion you feel comfortable.

Your thoughts on the show? Leave a comment below, send us an email (ihearofsherlock AT gmail DOT com), call us at (774) 221-READ (7323).

And above all, please let our sponsors know that you heard us rant and rave about their excellence during the programme: Wessex Press and The Baker Street Journal - and as always, a very special sponsor.

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