Monday 8th until Saturday 13th March 2010 @ Theatre Royal, Bath

To be able to successfully investigate the dark crimes of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a detective must be of a certain disposition. The fear of lurking top hats and supernatural extremities ready to blind the entire religious and moral framework of the innocent appears significantly more real in Victorian England. Not that Sherlock Holmes, the Baker Street investigator, feels this terror necessarily. He is able to clear the mist and enter the mindset of the villain. Working with the clues, Holmes is able to form linear reason from explosions of distress. However, no man lives without enemies, whether they are internal or flouncing about the place in stark life. The Secret of Sherlock Holmes at Bath’s Theatre Royal is a short exploration into the horrors of Holmes’ continuously stirring mind.

The play, a huge hit in the West End in the 1980s, delves into the reasoning behind Holmes’ character. Very little is known about Holmes, the only information is that which can be gained from the chronicles of his investigations kept by his friend and colleague Dr Watson. Holmes’ past – his parents, government working brother – and then future – with his drug use, dependence on Watson and his arch enemy, Professor James Moriarty. The latter occasionally forming a terrifying figure at the back of the stage.

With only two men, and set entirely at their Baker Street rooms, the play manages to be an enthralling and lip biting adventure; all credit to Philip Franks (Watson) and Peter Egan (Holmes). Dr Watson is endearing, sensitive and strong whilst Holmes is played perfectly as a man wrestling with himself; his crystal clear to quickly blurring thoughts and desires playing havoc with his mind and creating an unpredictable being.

At just over an hour, The Secret of Sherlock Holmes is a mere insight into Holmes’ complex world. For lovers of the texts it is a must see, for others it is an enticing invitation to step onto the cobbled streets of London with Holmes and Watson.

www.theatreroyal.org.uk

Helen Martin