Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Few could have predicted the enduring fascination with the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes. The new title in the series,
Fan Phenomena: Sherlock Holmes, offers a variety of different approaches to understanding the deep cultural legacy of Arthur Conan Doyleand#8217;s Sherlock Holmes stories from the moment of their first appearance in 1887 to the present day. The book discusses the ways in which various fan cultures have sprang up around the stories and how they have provided to be a strong cultural paradigm for the ways in which 20th- and 21st- century phenomena functions.
These include exploring the numerous adaptations, re-writings, rip-offs, role-playing, wiki and crowd-sourcing texts, virtual realities, and faux-scholarship. Many people are familiar with the later manifestations of Holmesian fan behaviour but their historical roots have been largely forgotten and are brought back to life in this thrilling book. The 2014 release of Fan Phenomena: Sherlock Holmes is a special edition as it coincides with Holmesand#8217; 160th birthday anniversary.
Synopsis
Few could have predicted the enduring fascination with the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes. From the stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to the recent BBC series that has made a heartthrob out of Benedict Cumberbatch, the sleuth has been much a part of the British and global cultural legacy from the moment of his first appearance in 1887.
The contributors to this book discuss the ways in which various fan cultures have sprung up around the stories and how they have proved to be a strong cultural paradigm for the ways in which phenomena functions in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Essays explore the numerous adaptations, rewritings, rip-offs, role-playing, wiki and crowdsourced texts, virtual realities, and faux scholarship Sherlock Holmes has inspired. Though fervid fan behavior is often mischaracterized as a modern phenomenon, the historical roots of fan manifestations that have been largely forgotten are revived in this thrilling book.
Complete with interviews with writers who have famously brought the character of Holmes back to life, the collection benefits from the vast knowledge of its contributors, including academics who teach in the field, archivists, and a number of writers who have been involved in the enactment of Holmes stories on stage, screen, and radio. The release of Fan Phenomena: Sherlock Holmes coincides with Holmes's 160th birthday, so it is no mystery that it will make a welcome addition to the burgeoning scholarship on this timeless detective.
About the Author
Tom Ue
Table of Contents
Introduction
Tom Ue and Jonathan Cranfield
Sherlock Holmes and Shakespeare
Tom Ue
Holmes and the Snake Skin Suits: Fighting for Survival on 50s Television
Russell Merritt
Fan Appreciation no. 1
Anthony Horowitz: Author of The House of Silk
Doyle or Death? An Investigation into the World of Pastiche
Luke Benjamen Kuhns
Fan Appreciation no. 2
Ellie Ann Soderstrom: Author of Steampunk Holmes: Legacy of the Nautilus
Sherlock Holmes, Fan Culture and Fan Letters
Jonathan Cranfield
Fan Appreciation no. 3
The Team behind The Young Sherlock Holmes Adventures
Sherlock Holmes in the Twenty-second Century: Rebranding Holmes for a Child Audience
Noel Brown
Fan Appreciation no. 4
Scott Beatty: Co-author of Sherlock Holmes: Year One
On Writing New Adventures on Audio: Into the Interstices of Canon
Jonathan Barnes
The Creation of and#8216;The Boy Sherlock Holmesand#8217;
Shane Peacock
Fan Appreciation no. 5
Robert Ryan: Author of Dead Manand#8217;s Land
Getting Level with the King-Devil: Moriarty, Modernity and Conspiracy
Benjamin Poore
Contributor Biographies
Image Credits