A common theme in most detective stories is superior observation skills and deductive reasoning. A defining feature of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Red-Headed League is the way the facts presented by the gullible Wilson appear so bizarre to Watson as to defy interpretation. This prompts Holmes’s to quip: Omne ignotum pro magnifico [we exaggerate the importance of the unknown]. Once he dismisses the Red-Headed League as a distraction, identifying the crime in progress becomes a straightforward matter for the great detective. Other themes include deception (appearance vs. reality), gullibility, greed (of both the criminals and Wilson), crime and justice.
Original Text / PDF / Audio (9,150 words)
Video Version
This 1985 British TV show is an excellent adaption of the story, with some “added bits” at both ends to make it fit the one-hour time-slot. At the end of the video we are told that Holmes’s arch-enemy Professor Moriarty was involved in the crime. This is not part of the original story (Doyle didn’t introduce Moriarty until two years later), and was probably added to pr6ovide a permanent villain for the series. Watch and enjoy!
Radio Play Version
There have been many radio play adaptions of the story. This 1990 episode of the Sherlock Holmes BBC Radio 4 series is one of the best. Listen and enjoy!