Sherlock & Co. - The Crooked Man - Part One

Episode Date: September 22, 2026

IT'S A KINDA MAGIC - Sherlock Holmes woke me with that crazed excitement in his eyes that could only mean one thing: a case. It became clear fairly early on however that this problem was a little too elementary for his tastes. So he made it into a game. John Watson vs Mariana Ametxazurra. Who could win the case and bring home the Crimesolving Cup. There is no cup. But there was at least fierce competition to impress Sherlock. And of course you lot, if you're impressed by such things. #TeamJohn Part 1 of 2 This episode contains swearing, death, animal suffering. Listener discretion is advised.A new clothing store has opened: www.sherlockwear.com For merchandise and transcripts go to: www.sherlockandco.co.uk For ad-free, early access to adventures in full go to www.patreon.com/sherlockandco To get in touch via email: [e-mail] Follow me @DocJWatsonMD on twitter and BlueSky, or sherlockandcopod on TikTok, instagram and YouTube.  This podcast is property of Goalhanger Podcasts.Copyright 2026. SHERLOCK AND CO. Based on the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Paul Waggott as Dr. John Watson Harry Attwell as Sherlock Holmes Marta da Silva as Mariana Ametxazurra Adam Jarrell as Inspector MackinnonLauren Hall as VetAdditional Voices:Adam Jarrell Joel Emery Darcey Ferguson Written by Joel Emery Directed by Adam Jarrell Editing and Sound Design by Adam Jarrell Produced by Neil Fearn and Jon Gill Executive Producer Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For just six pounds a month, binge ad-free adventures in full and have access to so much more over at patreon.com forward slash Sherlock and co. Pick a podcast, any podcast. I mean, don't actually, just listen to this one. The others are a waste of time for the most part. Welcome to the adventure of the crooked man. This adventure contains magic and blood and swearing. If you would like to hear some really special things, including something very very, very Very intriguing called a dead man's hand. Then please join the Patreon at patreon.com forward slash Sherlock and co.

You will also be able to hear both parts of this adventure. That'll be fun for you, won't it? And for my next trick, here is a scene transition into the episode itself. Nope, try again. And for my next trick, bollocks, hold on. For my next trick. Yes. Do not spare.

me from your gaze, for it is the last you will hear from me, and the last you will see as I, the phantom, descend into the box, this simple casket. I ask to those of you who have come here today, and those that watch the other side of these cameras, I ask you to remember this moment. Hold it tight in your mind. For that is now the only place where I shall reside. Not in this beautiful oratorial, Beautiful auditorium, not even in this casket.

The elements will take me. Ladies and gentlemen, there is nothing left to say except now you see me. Now you don't. Can we get those lights up, please, now. Open it, open it, open it, open it. Open it, open it. We haven't got the signal, so just open, no, we just open it now. Hello, Phantom! Come on!

We open it up, shall we? He hasn't come through? No. He hasn't come through? He's not underneath? No. Henry! He's gone. He's gone. He's gone.

Him is Dr John Watson, once of the British Army Northumberland Fusoleer Regiment. Now, a true crime podcast that are based in central London. I don't have much experience in criminology. So this is mostly a record of how I met possibly the most brilliant and bizarre person I have ever and will ever know. Join me as I document the adventures of Sherlock Holmes. He's gone. He's gone. Sherlock, I'm sleeping. No, you're not.

Correct, I'm not, but I am giving it a damn good go. Do you believe in magic? I believe in getting a decent night's sleep. Can I believe in that, please? Yes, they're not mutually exclusive. You may believe in both. Okay, great. Thanks. Well? Well, what?

Do you believe in magic? Um... Um, is possibly the worst answer you could give John. Oh, dearie me. How is it the worst? Because it suggests you are intelligent enough to answer with no, but don't have the conviction to do so. Oh dear, what a shame. Do I believe in magic? It depends. It depends.

Does it indeed? Fine. Do you think your listeners believe? Our listeners? Our listeners. Do they believe in such things? Um... Um, again. Oh, it's very early in the morning. I'm allowed an um or two. What's this? What?

Aha! You pulled a coin from my ear. Very impressive, mate. It is not a coin. No? No. Look at it. Follow the sparkle. As if by magic, a case shall appear. A case. Sherlock. Delicate little things. Hold them too tightly.

Try as you might to hold them. To make them your own abracadabra. Where did... How did... Hey, presto. In short, I have a case for you. So you have a case for me. I do.

Right. Isn't it usually you that requires the cases? Mm-hmm. But you... require the content, so I will provide it. Chop, Chop, Chop. We're waiting. Who's we? Morning. And who's this? Your glamorous assistant? Take a look. And these are... Pictures. Yes, of... Of one of our victims. One of our victims indeed. Well put, Mariana. Her name is Edna.

Right. She's 19. She's 19, and she's called Edna. You're not looking at the photos. Fine, fine. Trying to have a coffee, but sure, let's look at crime scene photos. As you can see, lacerations to her throat and her back. A puncture wound above her nose and above her left eye. A nasty break in the leg too here.

She's lucky to be alive. Sherlock? Yes, Watson. This is a cat? Yes, yes it is. Okay, we are a serious detective agency. We've just worked on behalf of the British government. You should be very proud.

Yeah, I am proud, which is probably why I'm a little apprehensive about our next case being the adventure of Edna the Cat. How do you expect to win with that attitude? Win what? It's the crack of dawn and I'm on a bloody train to Aldermaston to investigate a cat mauling. Aldershot. Whatever, Aldershot. I'm not winning. I am very much losing, is my point. Yes, and I may deduct a point for forgetting the location even though you are from nearby Wiltshire. Ah, yes. A deductor point from what?

From the match. What match? John versus Mariana. Yeah, in a game of what? Sorry. Crime solving. It's fun and educational. And it's also work. Oh, great.

Think of it as team bonding. Go team. What are you doing? I'm smiling. Look, there are no eyes in the team, Watson. The team is blinded by its bonds to one another. No, I, not eyes. The letter I, there's no eye in team.

That's the expression. Yes. That's rather literal. Yes, that's the point. I rather over-calibrated my metaphorical understanding of what the phrase may mean. Here, have another smile. Yes, that's very nice. It's because we're bonding as a team.

This is our stop. Come on. We can't keep her waiting. It's not fair. Keep who waiting? Edna. Oh, of course. Hey, beautiful girl. We, so cute.

Why is she staring at me? Maybe because you're showing her. no affection? She's just been in a fight. She doesn't want me or you, by the way, touching her stitches. She seems perfectly comfortable. How many lives you got left, Edna Love? Hmm? It'll just be good to know how many more times we're going to get called out here. Oh, she's up and about, isn't she? She is. A tough old thing. It's so great you have this garden here. Yeah, half the job of being a vet. Keep them happy and comfortable. And the rest of the symptoms become a lot more manageable.

The owners, will they be able to pick her up? Tomorrow or... No. Oh, right. Who does she belong to? Our other victim. Right. Right.

I'll give you a few more minutes and then I'll probably need to get her inside for another go at a lunch. Wait. Hmm? Do we not wish to ask the vet some questions? Uh, yeah. Yeah. Um... How long have you been a vet?

No, for the game. For the case. Ah, right. Oh, uh, is she... Is she well looked after by her owners, usually? That's better. Oh, definitely, yeah. What do you think these injuries are from?

Um... Not another cat? No? And she's got a mean stare on her. That could have been taken the wrong way. Well, that's the expected opponent in Edna's little scrap. But? But, I'd say the claw marks don't match.

And it's the biting for me. It's quite different from a cat fight. You think these bites aren't from a cat? It could be. Of course it could be. But that would be very unusual. That pattern, the amount of biting, and in those areas, it's predation, in its nature, not dominance. Yeah, the teeth mark seemed tiny as well.

They do, yeah. Which rules out badger and fox. If only you could tell us, Edna. Hey, darling? It was Russian. Holding the Russians accountable is World War III. They took down a British passenger jet containing 350 people. Man in the Kremlin is playing, Alex.

Got to ask yourself, do you want to play or not? You're the Prime Minister. You've done. Nothing! We would need to understand the policy context. All the relevant context will be structured as a framework today. And disseminated into an operation order, or Fragor. A Fragor that says to kill the president of Russia.

Yes. From Goldhanger. Who is going to be able to pull this off? An audio drama journey like no other. Men like Duffy, they are our most valuable weapons. Divised as a technically rigorous, geopolitical action thriller. We have two times friendly key.

Where Britain plays its strongest harm. He's the best. Against its strongest foe. Available now, wherever you get your podcasts. Further right this to me. Hello everyone. And welcome to Aldershot in Hampshire. Home to Edna the Cat, of course.

And also home to the British Army. Hence the distant rifle range crackle of gunfire. Never actually got here myself. But I know. my dad did. From our view of this path... You can see... Me. Hi! Yes we can see Mariana. But past her, just looking out into the sort of valley below and there's

lots of like... well, our digs, we'd call them, homes for military personnel and their families. Then to our right there is a fence that sort of acts as the boundary to the camps and bases. Big building over there You can't see it But that's the Aldershot Garrison And yeah It has its charms The occasional volley of practice rounds

Not so charming But part of the job description For the lads and lasses Of the British forces You're getting nostalgic What for gunfire For the camaraderie I've got all the camaraderie I need right here

Hey gang We also have a gun at home If you wish to indulge any wistful yearnings of the past. I'm all right. Thanks, mate. All good. How much further? A little further. We could have taken the road, of course, but the public footpath would have been used for the case,

so we will do the same. Still not giving me the details. It sounds like favouritism. Hey, he hasn't told me either, actually. Speaking of accusations of favouritism, it's time for shout-outs, which I will remind all listeners. They are mostly random. Shout-out to Lizzie.

A September birthday to boot and some advice from her lovely mum for Carol to start Pilates with her. She'd be well up for that, Lizzie's mum. Shout out to a little mountain town in Eastern Iceland too. Oh no, I can't say that. Githa Aurnadotir. Sorry about that, Githa. Happy birthday to Morgan from Australia. That was easy.

Shout out to Eloise and Lyra. Sorry, you missed your train. Back to Somerset. out for Lettie, who's 13 and in Kent. Shout out for Indigo May. A special shout out to Dan Evan Fam and their service dog, K-9. I hope you're recovering well. Thank you for your lovely words.

A special message for Ewan in... Get this, Mariana. Uh-huh. Older shot. Woo-hoo! Your mum says, get up, breakfast is ready. Shout out to Flubogene flunderpants in Virginia. That's what it says.

I believe you. Jack in Aldershot 2 here. What's going on? He wants to shout out Alex in Reading and Blake in Camberley. Yeah, and this last one is not random at all. I saved this one. Happy 24th birthday to Joelle in Vancouver, who lost their mum this year.

I know you and your mum, Dineine, both listen to the show. So here's to you and Dine. You've stepped in... No, I know. Why didn't you say anything? Because I'm doing moving shout-out. I didn't want to say, oh, no, I've stepped in dog shit. Stop.

What? I'm just wiping it in the hedge. Stop doing that. No, it came out of a dog's ass, Sherlock. It doesn't belong on my shoe. I don't believe it has. Oh, please move your face away from it. Please, I am begging you. Why do you always do this?

I don't always do this. Just stay still. What is it, Sherlock? Dark, elongated. It's tapered off. Well, maybe he was in a hurry. I can see. Consumed, fur.

Partly digested. Small bones. Interesting. And gross. I have noted the salient facts. Onwards. So, have you solved this case, or what? Oh, me?

I require a few final furnishings, with accent. to early police reports on the matter and a little browsing on my phone. I have nearly all of it. Right, but it's a race between me and Mariana, is it? A rather slow race, but a race nonetheless. We... we haven't even seen the crime scene yet. Then let's go take a look. We're here?

We're here. This house here. Come. After you. Oh, ow, ow! No, wait, just remembered it's competition. Stop pushing. Out the way! Police tape. Crime. Under investigation.

You're not getting extra points for these elementary observations. Oh, for God's sake. You do, however, get a point for the feces. Oh, get in. What? Any time you need it, mate, I'll step in it. I can make sure of that. Sherlock.

Inspector McKinnon, a long way from Scotland Yard. I moved. Took a job in the quiet shires. And how did that work out? Not great. John and Mariana. How's it going? We help with...

No, I know. I know. Louisham. Amber Lee and Rearness. It's good work. Yeah, yeah, retired Cullerman. I mean, Mariana here sort of cracked that particular case. Thank you, John. Pleasure. Well, this one, I'm convinced it's pretty straightforward,

but I can tell by your eyes you think otherwise, old pal. Thank you. For what? For letting me know my eyes betray me, noted. No problem. Come on in. Oh, you don't need to take your shoes off, it's all covered.

Trust me, I do. Right then, contestants. Sorry? You and John. Oh. We have met our first victim, and she presented us our first clues. We now have our crime scene. And with that...

More clues? More clues. indeed. This is the home of James and Nancy Bartley. James, 62 years old, Nancy 59. We're in their lounge. The French doors there open onto their garden, footpath facing, 30 yards deep, I'd say, front door over there, road facing. At 9.15pm last night, Nancy came through that front door as she returned home from London after finding the West End production of Operation Mincemeat, fiendishly funny. You putting words in her mouth, or... Today, I found the West End production of Operation Mincemeat fiendishly funny.

Right, okay. Posted on Facebook. Yes, yes, thank you. I got that. At 5.30pm following the matinee performance. Maybe deduct a point or... Shush. By all accounts, when she ventured out for this trip to the West End, she was buoyant. She left the house giddy with excitement to meet with her old friends,

to watch a show together to have dinner and drink Prosecco. Last night, however, upon returning home, the mood is... The exact opposite. Opposite of how she left this house in the late morning. Opposite to her constant Facebook updates and comments. Opposite to her usual bright demeanour. A thick, crippling darkness had come over her. So what changed? We don't know. But what we do know is that the neighbour next door tried conversing with her and got little in reply before Nancy barged through her front door just there. and she shouted at considerable volume at her husband, James Barclay. Were they, I mean, happily married? Do I need to point to the Facebook page again?

Oh, it's Facebook, mate. All social media is just showing off. Everyone's happily married on Facebook. Look around you. Pictures of one another, together and with their children. Framed love letters, a pinboard of trips together. So many pictures I haven't finished counting them. There's no separate spaces in this entire. a house, everything shared. A peaceful coexistence, neither of these chairs are sat in, but look at the indents on the couch. They share it every night, together holding each other a perfect marriage,

or it was, until last night. What happened? The argument was nearly half an hour long. And what was it about? The neighbour, who conveniently for us, lives the other side of that rather thin wall, says that all she heard was Nancy. Sir James was on the back foot in the doghouse, do we reckon? Well, right now, Watson. He's in the morgue. What? No.

Our loving couple had a ferocious argument. Nancy demanded for her life back. What the hell? Her life? Then a thud of the French doors, a scream, another thud, then silence. The neighbour opposite believes the security light came on, then off. Moments later, it came on one final time. Then? What? Next door came knocking. No reply.

The police were called. What did they find? Blood. In the carpet. Here and here. Smeared and wiped on towels. Nancy's phone on the floor with 999 on the call. French doors open. Front door locked from the inside.

Blood. His blood. That's right. Nancy was gone, but James was lying over there by the dining table, on his side. It looked like she'd moved him. He had a wound on the back of his skull and a broken neck. Struck from behind? Looks that way. Aye.

Right, and, um... What did she do with the weapon? We don't know. Where is she now? We don't know. So are you going to charge her? Do you have an arrest warrant? Absolutely we are.

Got it from the courts already. And we have, let's see, four more hours. Search is underway, but the charge remains active for another four hours. Then I'll go for another warrant. Once again, you have us against the clock, McKinnon? A British law. does, Holmes. Not me. Okay. The game is afoot and indeed underway.

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