🔎 📺 This is the twenty-eighth episode of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1954 TV Series).
It stars: 🕵️♂️ Ronald Howard as Sherlock Holmes 👨⚕️ Howard Marion-Crawford as Dr. Watson 👮 Archie Duncan as Inspector Lestrade
⚡ Episode Summary:
A man is discovered hanging in what appears to be suicide, but Holmes is not convinced. His investigation uncovers troubling inconsistencies, suggesting the “jolly hangman” may be part of a calculated murder. As hidden grudges and secret dealings emerge, Holmes and Watson unravel a grim plot masked as self-destruction.
💡 Why Watch This Episode?
✔️ A dark and suspenseful case probing the line between suicide and murder
✔️ Holmes’ keen attention to detail exposes the sinister truth
✔️ A moody, atmospheric mystery in the 1954 TV series
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👉 Watch the full playlist for all episodes of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1954)! https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYSxyPafGbnTKAJ16ovG0sQTB5iqXP1ra
👉 Don’t forget to Like 👍, Comment 💬 & Subscribe 🔔 for more vintage TV & mystery classics.
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📌 Hashtags & Tags for SEO:
#sherlockholmes #JollyHangman #TheAdventuresOfSherlockHolmes #1954TVSeries #ClassicTV #RonaldHoward #DrWatson #InspectorLestrade #vintagemystery #detectivedrama #GoldenAgeTelevision
________________________________________
It stars: 🕵️♂️ Ronald Howard as Sherlock Holmes 👨⚕️ Howard Marion-Crawford as Dr. Watson 👮 Archie Duncan as Inspector Lestrade
⚡ Episode Summary:
A man is discovered hanging in what appears to be suicide, but Holmes is not convinced. His investigation uncovers troubling inconsistencies, suggesting the “jolly hangman” may be part of a calculated murder. As hidden grudges and secret dealings emerge, Holmes and Watson unravel a grim plot masked as self-destruction.
💡 Why Watch This Episode?
✔️ A dark and suspenseful case probing the line between suicide and murder
✔️ Holmes’ keen attention to detail exposes the sinister truth
✔️ A moody, atmospheric mystery in the 1954 TV series
─────────────────────────────
👉 Watch the full playlist for all episodes of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1954)! https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYSxyPafGbnTKAJ16ovG0sQTB5iqXP1ra
👉 Don’t forget to Like 👍, Comment 💬 & Subscribe 🔔 for more vintage TV & mystery classics.
─────────────────────────────
📌 Hashtags & Tags for SEO:
#sherlockholmes #JollyHangman #TheAdventuresOfSherlockHolmes #1954TVSeries #ClassicTV #RonaldHoward #DrWatson #InspectorLestrade #vintagemystery #detectivedrama #GoldenAgeTelevision
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Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00The End
00:30The End
00:59The End
01:29The End
01:59Of course he will
02:01This is Mr. Sherlock Holmes
02:07I'm Dr. Watson
02:09Miss
02:10Mrs. Sir
02:11Mrs. Joseph
02:13Oh, come now, my dear
02:15It's not as bad as that
02:16It's Billy, sir
02:17My husband
02:18He's dead
02:19Oh, my dear
02:20Come and sit down and tell us about it
02:23Get a cup of tea, Watson
02:25They say he hanged himself, sir, three days ago
02:31In a hotel in Glasgow
02:33Oh, yes, I remember
02:34William Hooper, a travelling salesman with Whipple Brothers, I believe
02:37Yes, sir
02:38Brooms and brushes
02:40He was on his last job for the firm
02:42They were letting him go
02:44Yes, sir, but Billy would have found another job
02:47He wasn't afraid to work
02:48Of course he wasn't
02:49He didn't hang himself, sir
02:51He didn't
02:52Jessie, I believe you have a baby
02:55Yes, sir
02:57Six months old
02:58Is there any, uh, insurance?
03:05Yes, sir, but they say because Billy hanged himself
03:08The policy won't be paid
03:09Tell me, Jessie
03:13When did you last see Billy?
03:16On the day he went up to Glasgow
03:18On the train
03:19I went up part of the way with him to Doncaster
03:22To cheer him up, I take it
03:24Yes, sir
03:25He was so upset about losing his job
03:27About it being his last trip for Whipples
03:31Yes, of course, I understand
03:32Was he in a more cheerful frame of mind
03:34When you left the train at Doncaster?
03:37Oh, yes, sir
03:37We had ever such a jolly time
03:39There was a gentleman in the compartment
03:41Who was so funny he kept us in stitches
03:44When he laughed, you just couldn't help laughing with it
03:48I see
03:48Was there anyone who might have benefited by his death?
03:52No, sir
03:53No one at all
03:54Was he a native of London?
03:57No, sir
03:58He came from Expat
03:59That's a little village in Cornwall
04:01I see
04:03Well, I can't promise anything, Mrs. Hooper
04:05But I'll certainly do my best
04:07Now, where can I get in touch with you?
04:10Number 26, Western Lane
04:12And sir, there's something I must tell you
04:14Yes, Jessie
04:15I'm not very well off
04:17And what with the expenses of the baby
04:19Never mind, never mind
04:21There's no fee
04:22Oh, thank you, sir
04:23Goodbye, sir
04:30Goodbye, dear thing
04:31Sir, I don't know how to
04:34Holmes
04:46How did you know so much about William Hooper?
04:51I read about it in the papers, Watson
04:52One of those domestic tragedies
04:55That become buried in the back page
04:57Bye, flowers, sir
05:23No, thank you
05:24Flows, sir
05:31Flows for your missus
05:32Got any stinging nettles?
05:43If you want to kill somebody
05:44You can poison them
05:46Or shoot them
05:47Or stab them
05:48Or push them over a cliff
05:49If you like
05:49But you don't hang them
05:51It's too docently awkward
05:52Unless, of course, you want to make it look like suicide
05:55Oh, Watson
05:59Be a good fellow
06:00Would you and buy me
06:01Fifteen feet of manila rope
06:03Before we go up to Glasgow?
06:06Well, we could buy that anyway
06:07We
06:07Glasgow?
06:09As you know, Mr. Holmes
06:18I'm only allowing you to see this rope
06:20Because my cousin, Inspector Lestrade, asked me to
06:23He tells me you've been a wee thing useful to him
06:27Down there in London from time to time
06:29Well, that's very kind of you to say so, Inspector McDougall
06:32I'm sure that your cousin would appreciate that
06:35Well, there it is
06:38Nothing but an ordinary rope
06:40Nothing unusual about it at all
06:43Well, it's an efficient knot
06:45Which anyone could have tied
06:47And you're quite convinced that Billy Hooper hanged himself with it, eh?
06:51Well, he put the rope round his neck
06:53Stood in a chair
06:55And then kicked a chair from under him
06:57But first slinging the rope over a ceiling beam
06:59And tying it to a bedpost, eh?
07:02Right
07:02Have you examined the rope with the glass, Inspector?
07:07Glass, Mr. Holmes
07:08In Glasgow, we have another use
07:11A more practical use for a glass
07:13It's a bit of a wee drop in you, eh?
07:17Oh, yes, yes
07:18Then you'll find this, eh
07:19This glass a wee bit different, Inspector
07:21It helps you to see things more clearly
07:23Just what am I supposed to see with this?
07:28That the fibres on the rope that were slung over the beam
07:30Point towards the noose
07:33Yeah, I can see which way they point
07:36But I can't see the point of them
07:39Ah, well
07:39You will, Inspector
07:41Now I shall like to have a look at Billy Hooper's shoes
07:43And the room in which he was supposed to have hanged himself
07:46Mr. Holmes
07:47I'm beginning to have a great deal of sympathy
07:51For my cousin, Inspector Lestrade
07:53To say nothing of the entire London police force
07:57Ha, ha, ha
07:58Who is that?
08:10What's that?
08:11Who is that?
08:12What's that?
08:13Who is that?
08:14Huh?
08:15Morning, sir
08:16Morning
08:16Beautiful morning, isn't it?
08:18This is the room, gentlemen
08:20This is the beam, I presume
08:27over which the rope was slung.
08:28And this is the bedpost the laddie tied the rope to.
08:31Hmm, interesting.
08:33Just a little routine detection, sir.
08:34Why don't you go back to sleep?
08:36What, let me have the rope you bought in London, would you?
08:38Yes.
08:51Now, would you come and stand under the noose?
08:54Hmm.
08:57Just a minute, Holmes. What are you up to?
09:00Mr. Holmes, I'm afraid I can't allow you to hang your friend in my presence.
09:05Oh, very well.
09:06I only wanted to make the demonstration as graphic as possible.
09:08Would you hold it, Watson?
09:09Hmm.
09:10Now, observe the rope, Inspector, passing over the beam as I hoist Watson up.
09:19What is all this in aid of?
09:21Oh, just an experiment, Watson.
09:23I believe you put on a bit of weight, old chap.
09:26Hey, sir!
09:29This is nonsense in aid of!
09:32Let's have a look at the rope.
09:34Inspector, observe that part of the rope which passed over the beam.
09:37You will note that the fibres point towards the noose.
09:42Exactly like the fibres of the rope Hooper was hanged with.
09:45Hmm.
09:46So they do.
09:47But if he had hanged himself by kicking the chair from under him, his body dropping down would have caused the fibres to bend in the opposite direction, away from the noose.
09:57I've got it, Holmes.
09:58And because the fibres bend towards the noose, therefore Hooper must have been pulled upwards.
10:02And since he obviously didn't pull himself up, someone else must have.
10:05And that is murder.
10:06Murder!
10:08What are you talking about?
10:10The late William Hooper, sir.
10:12Mr. Holmes here, by a brilliant feat of detection, has just proved conclusively that he was hanged here, in this very room.
10:20Oh, no.
10:23Let me go ahead, Holmes.
10:24Now, this, I presume, is the chair that Hooper stood on.
10:25Ah, yeah, that's it.
10:26Yeah, there are no scratches on the seat.
10:27And there was a nail sticking out of Hooper's right shoe.
10:29Further evidence, if you require any, Inspector.
10:31Ah, fragments of glass.
10:32No.
10:33No.
10:34No.
10:35I'm not, I'm not.
10:36No.
10:37No.
10:38No.
10:39No.
10:40No.
10:41No.
10:42No.
10:43No.
10:44No.
10:45No.
10:46No.
10:47No.
10:48No.
10:49No.
10:50Was there a broken drinking glass found on the floor, Inspector?
10:53No, nothing at all.
10:55Oh, I expect the murderer tidied up after him.
10:58But I think that we'll discover that he gave Hooper a drink with a drug in it.
11:02Rather difficult to analyze at the moment, but I shall have a look into it.
11:07Was there someone in the bed, Watson, when we came in?
11:10John Carver, 28-Minute Road, Birmingham.
11:21Henry Hampton, 76 Casket...
11:2476 Casket Lane?
11:27Do you recall Hampton?
11:29Hampton, Hampton.
11:31Yes, I remember a salesman, I believe.
11:33Stay just the one night, not one of our regulars.
11:36Did you notice anything particular about him?
11:38No, no.
11:39Yes, a lint.
11:41That's right, a lint.
11:42Hmm.
11:43A lint, Judy.
11:44That will prove useful.
11:56Aside from the fact that Hooper was murdered, what else to be learning, Glasgow?
12:00Well, Watson, that the man who registered under the fictitious name of Henry Hampton of 76 Casket Lane is the murderer.
12:07Or a scene.
12:09A salesman just happened to be wandering about with a length of manila rope on him.
12:12Yes, of course, didn't you know?
12:14He's a rope salesman.
12:15But hang it all, Holmes.
12:17At least 50 people registered at the hotel that night.
12:20What makes you pick on this Hampton chair?
12:22Because, my dear fellow, an elementary geographical knowledge of London would tell you that the even numbers in Casket Lane stop in the 60s.
12:29Number 76 is obviously a figment of Mr. Hampton's imagination.
12:33I see.
12:35But then, if both his name and his address are false, where are we going to start looking for him?
12:41We begin, obviously, with a trip to X-Bar, Billy's birthplace in Cornwall.
12:46Now, I'll tell you one about the chap who woke up one morning with an elephant trunk instead of his nose.
12:53Began the day by blowing his own trumpet.
12:56Anyway, it's nonsense.
13:01The murder would be the other side of the world, by now.
13:16And now we return to the case of the Jolly Hangman.
13:31Mr. Holmes, Dr. Watson.
13:33Good morning, Jessie.
13:34I hope we haven't interrupted your household chores.
13:36Oh, no, sir.
13:37Please come in.
13:39So that's a little man, eh?
13:40Yes, sir.
13:41That's a little man.
13:42Oh, I say, Holmes.
13:44Look at that chest.
13:45Look at these biceps.
13:47Yes, Watson.
13:48And look at that nice high forehead and that well-developed cranium.
13:51Won't you have some tea, sir?
13:53I'm sorry, Jessie, but I'm afraid we won't have time.
13:56We've come to ask you a few questions about your husband.
13:58Yes, sir.
13:59Please sit down.
14:02Dr. Watson and I have just come back from X-Bar.
14:06It occurred to me that the seeds of what happened in Glasgow were sown in the past.
14:11We learned, Jessie, that when Billy was seven years old, his grandfather was murdered.
14:15Did you know that?
14:17No, sir.
14:18Billy never told me.
14:20I can understand that.
14:21He was a sensitive young man, and he wouldn't want to burden you with a gruesome story.
14:25What happened, sir?
14:28Well, at that time, Billy was living alone with his grandfather on an isolated farm.
14:33One night, the old man gave shelter to a stranger.
14:36The following morning, Billy's grandfather was found murdered, and Billy was discovered incoherent with fear hiding in a shed.
14:44The murderer was never identified.
14:47The only thing that Billy could tell the police was that the man lived.
14:50Exactly, Watson.
14:51However, years passed.
14:52The murderer felt comparatively safe.
14:54There was only one person in the world who could identify him.
14:58The man who once had been that seven-year-old boy.
15:01And he probably thought the little boy would forget anyway.
15:03But the little boy didn't forget.
15:05The memory remained here, dormant for many years, until it was reawakened in Glasgow.
15:13Oh, that window.
15:14It was dark, don't it?
15:15It was dropping shut like that.
15:16Billy was going to fix it.
15:17In Glasgow, sir?
15:18Yes, where he encountered the murderer.
15:19The memory began to stir, perhaps awakened by that limp.
15:23And the murderer began to realize that sooner or later, Billy would remember and identify him.
15:41Now I understand.
15:42Understand what?
15:43Billy's nightmares.
15:45All such frightful ones he'd always have.
15:49Moaning something about a hobble.
15:52Of course, a hobble.
15:53A limp.
15:54But he could never remember what the nightmares were about.
15:57Did Billy ever mention meeting a man who limped?
16:00No, so never.
16:03Then I believe, Watson, we can conclude that Billy had never met the man before the chance encounter in Glasgow.
16:08Oh, I'm sure he hadn't, sir.
16:11So the signs still point to our mysterious Mr. Hampton.
16:16Who is Mr. Hampton, sir?
16:18A gentleman I very much wish to lay my hands on.
16:21And I will.
16:23You may be sure of that, Jesse.
16:26My feet are killing me.
16:29How many more of these companies have we got to see?
16:31Oh, chin up, old chap.
16:32Only about a dozen or so.
16:33Well, can't we cover them in a hansom?
16:35What?
16:36A hansom cab on a beautiful day like this?
16:37Oh, Debbie's silly.
16:39Good afternoon.
16:51Do you use a colon or a semicolon after, dear sir?
16:54Oh, a colon, miss.
16:56Now come along, Holmes, you know better than that.
16:58A semicolon, young lady.
17:00But I can't find either.
17:02Tell me, is your sales manager in?
17:05A sales manager?
17:07That'd be Mr. Thornton, wouldn't it?
17:10Or Mr. Baxter?
17:12Yes, Mr. Baxter.
17:14Did you have an appointment with him?
17:16No.
17:17Must we have one?
17:20I don't know.
17:21I'll ask him.
17:28New I'd say, Holmes.
17:29A safe deduction, Watson.
17:31You noticed the fingernails unbroken.
17:34Oh, really?
17:35Mr. Baxter, since you don't have to have an appointment,
17:38he'll see you now.
17:39Ah, thank you.
17:45Good afternoon, gentlemen.
17:46Good afternoon.
17:47And what may I do for you?
17:49Good afternoon.
17:50My name's Dr. Watson, and this is Mr. Sherlock Holmes.
17:53Sherlock Holmes, eh?
17:54Oh, this is an honor.
17:56Not here to arrest anyone, though, I hope.
17:59Would it be an imposition to ask for your salesman's itinerary
18:03during, let's say, the last few weeks,
18:05the cities they've covered?
18:06No sooner asked than done,
18:08as the genie said.
18:13Oh, must be in the file drawer.
18:15I'll road chart you down.
18:17Uh, Dr. Watson, would you mind getting it?
18:19It's in the drawer over there.
18:20Yes, of course I will.
18:23The, the brown folder.
18:25Yes, that's it.
18:27That's it.
18:30Now, let's see, shall we?
18:32Hmm?
18:33Uh, Johnson covered Wales all this month.
18:39Harkinson over in Ireland.
18:41You're quite sure you've had no one in Glasgow?
18:43That's right.
18:44Used to go on the road myself, but not any longer.
18:47Can't stand the trains.
18:49Haven't been in one for years.
18:51Well, thank you very much indeed.
18:55And, uh, good day to you, sir.
18:57Good day.
18:58Come back if you've got any loose ends to tie up.
19:01Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.
19:03Oh, ho, ho, ho.
19:33Ah, good afternoon, Mrs. Hooper.
19:56You don't remember me, Mr. Baxter.
20:00Oh, yes, of course I do, sir.
20:02Won't you come in?
20:04You were the jolly gentleman on the train with Billy and me.
20:08Give me your coats.
20:09Oh, thank you.
20:11I've come to offer you my deepest sympathy.
20:15Yes, sir.
20:16Oh, a tragedy, a tragedy.
20:18He was a fine boy.
20:20Yes, sir.
20:21Oh, there, there, there.
20:23Come now, little lady.
20:24There's always a ray of sunshine somewhere.
20:26Ah, there it is.
20:29Ah, a little bundle of happiness.
20:37A joy and blessing for you.
20:42You'll always have...
20:43Ah, that's right.
20:49You didn't know, did you?
20:52I was seated all the time you were in the apartment, wasn't I?
20:56Well, just going to show you.
20:59We all have our trials and tribulations.
21:03Yes, sir.
21:04Oh, but here am I, forgetting what I came for.
21:09How'd you like a job, little lady, and someone to take care of the baby?
21:13Oh, sir.
21:15Then let's have a cup of tea and talk about it, shall we?
21:17Oh, sir, I don't know how to thank you.
21:20I'll do anything.
21:22I'll send you to a secretarial school, and then you'll be my secretary.
21:28Oh, sir, that would be wonderful.
21:31You know, I didn't know how I was going to manage.
21:34Oh.
21:41Take sugar, sir.
21:42Huh?
21:43Oh, no, thank you.
21:44Looking at you, he's sugar enough for me.
21:49Oh, really?
21:53My friend Sherlock Holmes tells me you've been to see him.
21:58Do you know Sherlock Holmes, sir?
22:00Oh, I should think I do.
22:02Always asking my advice, Sherlock is.
22:04Can't solve a case without me, he says.
22:10He and Dr. Watson went up to Glasgow, you know,
22:13inquiring at the hotel, where Billy was.
22:16And then they went down to X-Bar.
22:20How do you know all that, sir?
22:23Oh, Sherlock tells me everything.
22:28I suppose you told him that you and Billy met me on the train,
22:32and you gave him my name.
22:33I'm afraid I'd forgotten your name, sir.
22:38Had you now?
22:41Then you're the only one who knows, eh?
22:43Well, wouldn't Sherlock be surprised
22:46to find that I'd met Billy on the train?
22:49Yes, indeed.
22:51Wouldn't he be surprised?
22:54Yes, sir.
22:56Now, drink up your tea,
22:57and we'll talk about your new job.
22:59Eh?
23:08What?
23:09What is it?
23:10On the train coming down from Glasgow.
23:12What about the train?
23:13That's where we heard that laugh.
23:16By Jove, you're right.
23:16The man telling jokes in the next compartment.
23:18Oh, I've been a fool.
23:20Why do you suppose he sent you to get that road chart
23:21and he could have got it himself?
23:22Well, I suppose I was nearest, sir.
23:24No, because he didn't want us to see that he limped.
23:26Don't you understand?
23:28He's the jolly man in the train
23:29who cheered up Billy and Jesse.
23:30Yeah.
23:31Cabby!
23:32Cabby!
23:32Here!
23:36Quickly, Watson.
23:37We've no time to lose.
23:38I'm right behind you.
23:42Baxter's office.
23:43No.
23:43Who's the only person who can prove
23:44that Baxter met Billy?
23:46Why, uh, uh...
23:47Jesse!
23:48Yes, of course.
23:4826 Western Lane, driver and fast.
23:50We've got to stop another hanging.
23:53Just sleep.
23:55Sleep.
23:55You had to go to Sherlock Holmes, eh?
24:17Couldn't leave well alone, could you?
24:21You're just like your husband in that.
24:23He couldn't let sleeping dogs lie either.
24:28The way he looked when he saw me walk out of the train at Glasgow.
24:33Well, maybe he wouldn't have remembered my limp from that night,
24:38and maybe he would.
24:40No point in taking chances.
24:41I don't believe in taking chances.
24:47Mrs. Hooper?
24:49Mrs. Hooper?
24:50It's Sherlock Holmes.
24:52Open the door.
24:54Mrs. Hooper?
24:56Jesse, it's Sherlock Holmes.
24:57Open our door.
24:59Jesse, open the door.
25:02All right, Watson, break it down.
25:03It's all right, she's just drugged.
25:12Look, what?
25:18Oh, no.
25:24Neck broken.
25:25Oh, my God.
25:36Come on.
25:40THE END
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