#8th december
Sherlock Holmes is not a religious nor particularly spiritual man. For this reason “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle” is a rarity much like the blue carbuncle itself is a rarity. The story not only features Christmas, but is also keeping with the Christian themes of the holiday. Luckily, unlike the blue carbuncle, there is not a sinister history behind it. As soon as I saw the Holmesian Holiday calendar I knew I wanted to write a meta comparing the ACD canon story to the Granada Holmes adaptation. I found a cheap audio edition of three unabridged stories including “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle” read by Edward Hardwicke at a charity store.
As any Granada Holmes fan knows David Burke played Watson in the adaptation of “The Blue Carbuncle”. I think that both David Burke and Edward Hardwicke are excellent Watsons. Recording an audiobook is not the same as playing a character on a TV show. With audiobooks more attention is paid to clarity than emotion. Obviously with an audiobook the actor only has their voice to convey meaning as opposed to body language and facial expressions. Despite the limitations I thought it would be interesting to compare not only the content of the canon story versus the Granada Holmes adaptation, but David Burke playing Watson versus Edward Hardwicke reading the story.
Edward Hardwicke does an excellent job with the audiobook. His voices for the minor characters are particularly noteworthy, but he conveys Holmes’ emotions well and, not surprisingly, does an excellent job with Watson’s lines. However, even based on voice alone, Burke’s Watson is a more energetic Watson.
David Burke is a master at the physical components of acting, but for the comparison I tried to focus solely on how he verbalized Watson. Although I have no complaints about Hardwicke’s reading of the betting scene, it was far more enjoyable with the expressions and physical comedy that Brett and Burke brought to their characters.
As stated above reading an audiobook is not the same as playing a character, but it was still a bit weird to hear Hardwicke reading Holmes’ dialogue. There was a part of my brain going “No, you are Watson.” It also reminded me just how much Brett’s physicality brought to the character of Holmes. His “oh you scared me gesture” to Peterson or the look in his eyes as he watches Watson try to deduce the hat and then lists his deductions based on the hat brings so much more than can be shown with the written word or an audiobook. Brett was a brilliant actor and it is unfortunate that he did not receive more recognition for his work as Holmes.
Granada Holmes especially in the earlier episodes tried to stay as close as possible to the original canon stories. Jeremy Brett was a strong proponent of being as true to Doyle as possible within the constraints that come with translating a written story into a filmed episode. “The Blue Carbuncle” is one the closest episodes to the canon stories. A large portion of the dialogue is taken straight from the story. In cases when the physicality of the actors, scenery, and props eliminated the need for some canon text the rest of the dialogue is frequently retained.
This being said there are some noteworthy differences between the stories. In the canon story Watson visits Holmes after Christmas and finds him contemplating Henry Baker’s hat. As Watson is telling the story in canon it is necessary that he be present or told about something in order for it to be included in the story. In Granada Holmes we are seeing the story unfold and, thus, scenes that Watson doesn’t know the details about can be included. On Granada Holmes Watson never marries and Watson comes home from Christmas shopping to find Holmes contemplating the hat. We are also treated to Mrs. Hudson waking up a very grumpy Holmes. There is a certain irony to Holmes’ grumpiness at being woken up considering how he expects Watson to be cheerful whenever Holmes wakes him up. .
As Watson is not the narrator on Granada Holmes we also get the treat of the humourous first scene between Peterson and Holmes. Compared to many other stories “The Adventures of the Blue Carbuncle” is a light one, but this scene is just plain fun while still contributing to the plot. These scenes are great examples of an adaptation enhancing the story in the telling rather than changing the story in the telling. Happiness and humour have a place in Sherlock Holmes stories.
In light of Holmes’ general lack of religious belief the ending is surprisingly overtly Christian. “I am not retained by the police to supply their deficiencies. If Horner were in danger it would be another thing; but this fellow will not appear against him, and the case must collapse. I suppose that I am commuting a felony, but it is just possible that I am saving a soul. This fellow will not go wrong again; he is too terribly frightened. Send him to jail now, and you make him a jail-bird for life. Besides, it is the season of forgiveness. Chance has put in our way a most singular and whimsical problem, and its solution is its own reward.” Brett delivers the line “I am not retained by the police to supply their deficiencies” with much more anger than in Hardwicke’s does in the audiobook.
Another change made for dramatic reasons is that Watson says he cannot enjoy dinner while knowing that John Horner is still falsely imprisoned. Holmes sighs and he and Watson leave immediately go to the authorities to make sure that Horner is reunited with his family. The episode ends with the heartwarming scene of Horner being reunited with his wife and children.
On a less positive note Brett’s Holmes, in contrast to the canon story in which Holmes sends word to the Countess that he has the blue carbuncle, says he is keeping it for his museum. It is unclear whether Holmes is entirely serious. If so, Peterson would no longer be receiving the award from the Countess. One would hope that in that case Holmes would be giving Peterson a reward.
It is not often that one has the opportunity to appreciate ACD canon, Jeremy Brett, David Burke, and Edward Hardwicke in the same story. “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle” and the Granada Holmes adaptation of it give fans that opportunity.
