Contains mild spoilers
BBC Radio Dramatisation by Bert Coules. Starring Clive Merrison and Michael Williams. 50 mins approx.
The Lions Mane is one of the later stories in the series in which the tale is told by Holmes himself. By now, the former resident of Baker Street is in his 50s and living in a remote spot by the sea, alone and contemplative, say for a housekeeper and his bees. Since their Baker Street days Watson has re-married and the two see each other infrequently. Holmes having escaped London to shelter from his growing renown, thanks to the doctor’s published accounts of their adventures.
On the days shortly before Watson’s arrival for a short holiday, Holmes is forced to solve a mystery when one of his acquaintances painfully expires in front of him. Having taken a swim, and then apparently attacked, the man struggled up the cliff path from the beach in search of help. A likeable and respected fellow, there seems to be nobody who would wish him harm, and on a beach overlooked by cliffs, where could the killer possibly hide? A second death helps Holmes solve the mystery before his friend arrives for his weekend visit, but that doesn’t stop him passing the case to Watson to solve. For fun
This audio drama sees the duo role-playing at being Holmes and Watson. If that sounds slightly meta, then hold on to your deerstalker because we’re about to dive into deeper waters.
Watson’s despondency at the beginning of the story plays on our sympathies. He’s smarting from having seen a play based on his accounts of Holmes’ cases in which the consulting detective is played by an actor named William Gillet and portrayed as a wily eccentric with Watson as his doting sidekick, a deferential oaf, remarking often on his friend’s vastly superior intellect. He’s terrified history will remember him merely as a bumbling cipher. This echoes David Burke (a fine character actor, who died earlier this year), and his decision to quit the role of John Watson opposite Jeremy Brett’s definitive take on the character in Granada Television’s The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Burke later admitted one of the reasons he left the series after two years because he tired of finding new ways of saying “Good heavens, Holmes!”.
Gillet was the first actor to play the Holmes in any medium. This occurred in the real world, during the years in which the adventure of The Lions Mane. Conan-Doyle’s stories were originally published in The Strand, the same magazine in which the fictional Dr. Watson’s tales are also published and Merrison plays Holmes (created by Conan Doyle but made famous in the fiction by Watson) discussing the performance of a real actor (Gillet), who played the same part, almost one hundred years earlier. These elements are contained within a story where Watson, and the audience, is presented with a mystery to unravel , even though it’s already been solved and written up by Holmes, who is now relating the tale.
To the casual listener all this is throwaway stuff but if you’re a Holmes fan you’re may certainly appreciate these little touches. And if you want to study meta textualism, this must be a suitably head scratching place to start!
I like these plays because, despite the out-of-order presentation—like their printed counterparts — Williams and Merrison clearly took the time to consider how to pitch their performances. Only a handful of years separated this production, which is set late into Holmes and Watson’s acquaintance, and the recording of the pair’s first meeting in A -Study in Scarlet, yet they’re clearly playing subtly different versions of their of characters. Here Holmes is less contentious, more at peace while Watson is getting used to married life again and, like many men at a certain time of life, slightly anxious and preoccupied with how he’ll be remembered. It’s powerful, in an understated British stiff-upper-lip type of way, as time tests their once unbreakable bond.
The sound design of this audio drama is rich and evocative, transporting the listener effortlessly to the reclusion of Holmes’s seaside home and, happily, there are few any guest characters in The Lion’s Mane, which allow for plenty of interactions from the leads. When Lestrade’s gone back to the Yard, Mrs Hudson returned to her pantry and the villains are behind bars, all we want is interplay between Holmes and Watson, to be privy to their fireside discussions, and perhaps eavesdrop on their reminiscences. Here, the wish comes true.
This is a gently paced audio drama. There is no urgency and no lives are hang in the balance, but the listener can’t resist the need to get to the bottom of the mystery.
It’s a strong character piece, adapted by someone happy to play with characteristics we think we know and an almost fan-ish understanding of the Holmes cannon. It all adds to the excellent central mystery, and encourages the actors to perform honestly the melancholy of an aged, fractious friendship, and the futility of railing against the drumbeat of time.
I have poor recollection of the original short story. I seem to recall it as a fairly brief affair, but with a good central mystery. Here, it makes for one of the strongest episodes in the series starring Merrison and Williams, and absolutely worth a listen.
Sherlock Holmes starring Clive Merrison is available on the BBC Sounds App, Amazon and streamed on YouTube by searching the relevant key words.
Copyright Martin Gregory 2026
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