Sunday 27 August 2023

Sherlock Holmes

 

1993: Sherlock Holmes (Design - Andrew Davidson)

The "games afoot" with Sherlock Holmes.  I know the received wisdom is that collectors don't like addressed FDCs but I am not one of them for it tells of a journey when a collection is broken up and moves on. What better person to have on a Sherlock Holmes cover than a retired army officer.  In imagination he could be a friend of Dr Watson or would he be "a person of interest" in one of  Holmes cases?

The stamps have one letter of the alphabet on each which spell out the name Doyle
Here Holmes and Watson are joined by Lestrade from Scotland Yard who would have his own suspects and also those who the police think might have been involved in a crime but they do not have enough evidence - a 'Persons of Interest' He learned to work with the great detective who would always find the evidence.  Holmes brother Mycroft is introduced to readers in 'The Greek Interpreter' and of course nothing would be complete without Holmes arch nemesis Professor Moriarty. Famously Conon Doyle tried to kill off Holmes in 'The Final Problem' but had to bring him back due to public demand.
2013: Great Britains
Royal Mail did issue a Conon Doyle stamp as part of their "Eminent Britons" set in 2009 but I do not have it so here instead is Peter Cushing who played Holmes in a 1960s TV series which I've never seen, although I have seen him in the Hammer film "Hound of the Baskervilles" on numerous occasions. He was joined by another Hammer favourite, Christopher Lee, who appears as Henry Baskerville and indeed would later go on to play Holmes himself. My own personal favourite is the Jeremy Brett version of Holmes in the  TV series of the 1980s/90s
2020: Sherlock (Design - Karolis Stautniekas)

This mini sheet features stories that Doyle ranked among his favourites and have not appeared on GB stamps before. It was issued with a set of stamps featuring the TV series "Sherlock", a modern retelling of the stories with Dominic Cumberbatch playing Holmes.

Sunday Stamps theme this week is - Persons of Interest -  See It On A Postcard




4 comments:

viridian said...

Murder Mysteries indeed! Great collection.

Mail Adventures said...

The address on the FDC seems just perfect for one of Holmes' mysteries!
I love the stamps. I only have received a couple from the newest set. And now I feel like reading Sherlock Holmes' adventures!

violet s said...

These are great sets. There is so much to see in the first etchings onee over the later ones.

marina said...

These are awesome stamps!! I like the fact that in some stamps they included a letter to spell Doyle