Sherlock & Co. - The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax - Part One

Episode Date: April 1, 2025

THE LADY DOTH VANISH - we had a brief break from a high profile case and were thrown right into another. An icon of UK television was reported missing, having last been seen on a cruise ship in the Mediterranean. This was a national shock and naturally; it was a job for Sherlock and Co Ltd. Part 1 of 3 This episode contains reference to animal abuse, violence, gore, swearing, references to abduction and coercive behaviour. Listener discretion is advised. 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 2025. 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 Darcey Ferguson as Marie Devine Jasmine Kerr as Lady Frances Carfax Adam Jarrell as Wilton Additional voices Joel Emery Written by Joel Emery Directed by Adam Jarrell Editing and Sound Design by Holy Smokes Audio Produced by Neil Fearn and Jon Gill Executive Producer Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Big things coming, go to patreon.com forward slash Sherlock and co to join thousands of others and get all the content ad free right away and so so much more. This episode... God, how can I even say this? The opening to this episode is something that I just... Just... listen. We're okay for now, but... It's important you hear exactly what happened. Come, Watson. We must delve deeper into the sewer. And delve deeper we shall. Because now I'm armed and ready. Ingenious, Watson. The General's shotgun. Yeah, I don't know what the gun laws are here in Sumatra, but...

I smell a rat. And it's time to flush him out. This way. The sewer chamber will split. We'll avoid the overflow chamber and continue our course. Yeah, I agree. Onwards. You know, it's times like these when we're chasing down a giant rat in distant lands that I am reminded of our rodent companion back home.

Ah yes, Graham. We shall return to him one day. And to Archie. And of course to Mariana. Yeah, but that is not this day. It's not this day. Watson, look out! The rat! He must be eight foot high, Watson. Get back! Direct hit!

He's wounded! Down! He's lunging towards us with those monstrous teeth! I can hold his... ... jaws open! I just... I need you to fire... the gun directly into his mouth.

Yeah, you got it, buddy. He won't get hurt. Faster, Watson. Just reload it. You must hurry. I can't hold him much longer. Nearly there. He wishes to feast on us Watson. He's hungry for human flesh.

Yeah, well, he's gonna have to settle for bullets. Dinner is served. What the hell are you doing? Er... just... in the middle of something. Of what? Why does Archie have a tie around his butt? That's his rat tail. His rat tail? Yes. He's the giant rat of Sumatra. So... what do you want? Well, now I wanna leave and quit the company.

Will you relax? It's an April Fool's joke. What? This episode will go out on April the 1st, so we're tricking the listeners. You know, a lot of the real drama I can do in post. There's a client downstairs. Yep, yep, yep, be right there.

Archie, Archie, the performance is concluded. Archie. My name is Dr John Watson, once of the British Army Northumberland Fusilier Regiment, now a true crime podcaster 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. Alright. Oh lovely, you're hanging upside down. You ought to be careful doing that, that bar could snap.

Is this why you didn't message me? Because you know, it's pretty easy to leave a voice note even though you seem to be allergic to it can we turn this down please Akbash is do we have a new greeting that I'm not aware of the Akbash was in the park. Okay. Is that... Are these code words? No? Are you... you shaking your head? For God's sake, Archie, off, mate, please. Sherlock, can you do this in your room? Rosgar. Right, bye-bye. Where are you going? Away from this sort of

sage guru act thing that you're doing. Rosgar... ...the Akbash. Look, you're in an extremely vulnerable position. I'm already in a bad mood and you're deliberately trying to wind me up. No I'm not. Yes, you are. All the while you're dangling around like a human punch bag.

Very tempting one as well. The reason for your bad mood. Rosgar the Akbash. Right, that's it. Archie, lick his face. No, no, no. Well then speak! Words! Normal ones. The words I am speaking are normal, they're just Turkish. Akbash is a dog breed.

It's the one in Regent's Park you don't like that has an obsession with Archie's rear end. His name is Rusgar. How on earth do you know that that big fluffy prick was in the park? Splashes from Archie's centre marking on your left leg. So he was in close proximity to you, confirmed by the pressure blanching on your left hand from his lead, which means he was pulling you. Which explains his anxiety for rehydration. You should refill his bowl, by the way. Very impressive.

Not really. Archie generally is unleashed in the park. There's only one reason why he wouldn't be. Rusgar the ac bash. Exactly. Phone. Mariana. Answer. Hola. Hola. Can you come down here please? Oh, Sherlock too. On our way. Archie, bowl, water. Being annoying. Stop. Don't push me. Whatever. This is forced oscillation.

The amplitude disrupts my periodic motion. Watson, help me get down. It's a podcaster delivery. Oh great. Got my co-host too. Special bundle offer. Oh, there's no client. No, there is not. May I return upstairs? Up, up, up. You'll want to see this. What is it? iPad. Actually, no, wait, this is live anyway, so it should be on the news.

Oh, this better not be Swindon Town highlights because I'm already in a bad mood. Look. Penny Montgomery, known for her iconic role as Lady Frances Carfax in the long-running detective series The Lady Doth Investigate has been reported missing. No. Miss Montgomery was last seen aboard the cruise line at the Montpellier which is due to dock in the port of Alexandria in northern Egypt at 3 p.m. today. Robert Hammond. What do they mean she's missing? Like did she drown? It is the Viscount. The honorable 12th Viscount of Milchester. What Lady Frances? That's impossible!

Impossible is a word for lazy men who don't wish to think hard enough. Wouldn't you agree, Walton? Quite brilliant as always, ma'am. State of him. Lady Frances, I have offered you the very finest accommodation. And I will ensure Her Majesty's prison, Pentonville, will endeavour to offer you the very same Lord Abbott of Milchester. How dare you!

How dare I? It is my nature. Why dare I? Because the truth demands it oh good line it is rather good alas it can my lord reality is dreadfully inconsiderate that way wouldn't you agree Wilton Wouldn't you agree, Wilson? Yes, indeed, ma'am. I would agree. Start it again, lady.

The last and most recent scene shot by Penny Montgomery in her role as Lady Frances Carfax. Since then, the 24th series of The Lady Doth investigate wrapped and Penny Montgomery began her off-season break with a trip to Lausanne in Switzerland. From there she visited Barden-Baden in Germany before boarding the Montpellier cruise liner and traversing the Mediterranean. It was at 11 a.m. this morning when she had missed two pre-booked spa treatments and wasn't answering to cleaning staff that the alarm was raised. She had been seen the night before on the ship following its routine dock at the previous port on the Greek island of Rhodes. A spokesperson for Media Cruises

insists that everything is being done to locate Miss Montgomery and they are in constant communication with her family and her friends. The Egyptian government has confirmed that upon the Montpellier's docking here in Alexandria this afternoon Egyptian police will undertake a full inspection and search of the vessel as soon as clearance is granted but for now the mystery continues. Fans of the great Lady Frances car facts will be hoping for a simple and swift resolution and that hopefully it doesn't take a super sleuth to crack this most peculiar case. Robert Hammond, Port of Alexandria, Egypt. Thank you Robert. The Chancellor of the Exchequer has confirmed that the rise... I can't believe it. That... that's crazy.

How? Just... just how? Indeed. What was the evidence for her assertion against the Viscount? That's not... that's not what matters, Sherlock. Lady Frances Carfax is a big, big show. That's not what matters, Sherlock. Lady Frances Carfax is a big, big show. Penny Montgomery is an icon. I even watched that show growing up. Yeah, I remember it on in the background a lot when I was younger.

Carol's a big fan. Why would the police allow her to just conduct an inquiry into the Viscount on their car? Sherlock, let's put that to one side for now. How does a woman go missing on a ship? There's innumerable answers to that question, Watson. Well, maybe if you have a think and actually come up with something we could help the investigation. Police might make a complete hash of it for Awina. Make a hash of it?

Yeah, like, pulls it up, do a bad job type thing. I see. Let's, okay, let's see what we can figure out on Penny Montgomery. I'm gonna google her. Okay, I'll message Carol, get the gossip. Good lord. Alright, well, what do you suggest, Master Detective? Call Marie Devine. You can get her details by signing up to this recruitment agency site. How the hell? The news item used three photos. There was a young woman in two of them. She didn't have the same attire as the production crews.

She held two phones, and one very premium, very expensive handbag, despite having her own cheap wraparound purse. So… So… Search for Penny Montgomery, Assistant. And before you ask why, it's because that is how the observations present themselves. Right, yeah. You see?

Top search result, Marie Devine, Executive Assistant specialising in talent management within broadcast and TV production. There's her picture. That's the woman on the broadcast. Bye. And her status on the recruitment site is looking for work, so you might want to ask her why she has recently parted company with Ms Montgomery shortly before her disappearance. Yep. Good observation.

Bye. Bye. Quite brilliant, as always. Hmm. Brilliant, as always. I'm Sarah Churchwell, author, journalist, and academic. And I'm David Aldoushoga, historian and broadcaster. And together, we're the hosts of Goalhanger's latest podcast, Journey Through Time. We're going to be looking at hidden social histories behind famous chapters from the past.

Like, what was it like to actually live during Prohibition? Or to have been there on the ground for the Great Fire of London? We'll be uncovering it all. And we'll have characters and stories that have been forgotten, but shouldn't have been. This week, we've got one of my favorites, Victoria Woodhull, the first woman to run for U.S. president all the way back in 1872, 50 years before American women could even vote. She was also the first woman to address Congress and to open a brokerage on Wall Street where she made a fortune.

It's an incredible story, but it is also full of contradictions. She was a trailblazing woman in politics, but later in life, she also turned to the pseudoscience of eugenics. So join us on Journey Through Time and hear a clip from the Victoria Woodhull story at the end of this episode.

We are gathered here today to remember Florence Yvesham. Florence was a true friend of the communi- Stop the service! We can't do this! Get this silly woman out of here! This is a house of God! Oh, I won't be long, Father. You shall bury Florence Evesham today, but I won't let you bury the truth. What? This is damn right preposterous!

Who do you think you are? I am Lady Frances Carthax and I'm a detective. But I can tell you, Mr Thornley here, one of the pallbearers, would have rather hoped for a chiropractor over a detective. Isn't that right? Look back! It aches, Lady Frances. A rather heavy coffin for such a frail old woman. Don't you think?

Impossible so. Impossible? Or improbably? For goodness sake. Shhh! I don't get it. Patience dear Wilton. This Wilton bloke is such an idiot. Everybody is looking.

I can't believe you've dragged us into this mess ladies and gentlemen. He's such a whiner. Fucking get on with it, mate. Suck it up. It's crime. Please shut up. I am watching the show. Will you please shut up? I am watching the show. Dear Wilton, don't you agree? What?

For sake. Never been one for open casket funerals, but I may have to make an exception. Excuse me? No! You can't! You mustn't! I must! It doesn't have much air left, I'm afraid, Father. These theatrics are a little unnecessary. Hmm.

And quite frankly, disrespectful to the bereaved. Hello there. Mr Pearson. This is ridiculous. Where am I? You're at a funeral. But don't worry, it's not yours. Not today.

Why are they laughing? Ladies and gentlemen, my heart goes out to you for your loss. I hope you can continue this service in the peace and reverence which is deserved for dear Florence. But your priest, I'm afraid, will be coming with me. No! Stop this! Pearson is a crook and a scoundrel! He tried to sleep with my wife! My beautiful, bauxome wife! Brilliant as always, ma. Ah! Blumineck, I've spilled holy water all over me trousers!

Wilson! I've just washed me, done it! Oh please, please just turn it off. And before you answer with the same bollocks again, it does not qualify as research. Sorry, but it doesn't. Why is she always right? She's not! He means Lady Frances, idiot.

Oh yeah, well they're just, I dunno, the detective's just always right in these kind of shows. A little far-fetched, don't you think? She just pulled a bloke out of an old woman's coffin. Well, the priest would have access to the coffin and he drugged him. Oh, the priest just drugged him, did he? Yes, because they spoke with him earlier and he mentioned the medication to put his dog to sleep as he wanted to administer the- Ah, alright, alright, alright, alright, alright, I don't need to relive the plot. And then he can make sure the casket is buried with Mr Pearson.

Stop! That hat though... Yeah, yeah, I mean that is iconic. It's just a hat. Yeah, but you know, you see that style hat and you just... you just think Lady Frances. Do you? Yes. Err, I just don't think a detective should be wearing a hat.

Nor do I think they should be presenting themselves as anything remotely near-iconic. You should get one. It's a purple fascinator for women. No, your own hat style. No. Oh, she's here. Yes, plan is coming together. There's a plan now, is there?

We contacted Marie and said that we wanted to hire her and asked if she'd be willing to come round for an interview. Rather cruel, isn't it? Oh, please, if you did it, we'd all be hailing you as a genius. Come on. So, who else have you worked for, Marie? As in famous people? Yeah, yeah, there you go. Milk. No sugar. That's lovely. Um, who else have I worked for? I worked for David L. Grant

and Sandra Priestley and yeah, a couple of others. Cool, cool. And sorry, just to check, there's no posting obviously. You just DM'd me on the app. We did, yeah. So I haven't got much detail apart from salary and hours. Okay, yeah. More detail. Mm-hmm.

John? More detail? Well, erm... So who's the talent? The talent? The celeb is... erm... It's this. Him. Him? Me? Yep. Yep, this is Sherlock Holmes. Hi. Hello. And yeah, he's

a really, really big name in the investigative fields sort of thing. Cool, great. I can Google you later. Well, have you heard of a little-known podcast company called Goalhanger? No. Oh, well, yeah, they do podcasts. Gary Lineker is... Never mind. I notice you didn't mention Penny Montgomery on your list of who you've worked for, Marie. Penny Montgomery?

She's...she's ten times more famous than the actors you mentioned. And you worked with her for four years. And she was your most recent employer. Why did you leave her out? Very good. Apologies. Involuntary speech happens sometimes. I'm, so I'm aware of everything going on right now and maybe I shouldn't be mentioning her name or I shouldn't be commenting on her and it's well cuz like

do you know what actually thank you for the cup of tea. Marie. Marie. And for the interest in my services but to be honest- Marie please we are not making accusations. Thank you for the cup of tea. Marie. Marie. And for the interest in my services, but to be honest- Marie, please. We are not making accusations. I'd rather not get involved in any of this and I really- this makes me really uncomfortable. Okay, nobody is trying to make you uncomfortable. We just want to get all the information we can on Penny.

Are you police? No. Milverton's people have been after me as well. Did you work for him? Milverton? Charles Augustus Milverton? Not at all, okay? We're just investigators. Yeah, we're not police. We're not journalists, right? He's a journalist.

Feels more threatening than that at times. Yeah, I bet. What's going on, Marie? I, um... You're fearful of somebody. Mm-hmm. But not of her. Not of Penny.

That's right. Yeah, it's... It's been going on for a couple of years. There was suddenly this man in her life. She'd always been very...well, anti-menmen to be honest. She found them very frustrating. She was married young and her late husband passed away a good 15 years ago now and I think she just wanted to live for herself. But having said all that and having known that about her, all that and having known that about her, this guy started to... what's the word? Harass? No, nothing like that. He started to infringe, that's it, infringe on my responsibilities

with Penny. The better part of my responsibilities, not the errands or the correspondence, but the management side of things, the promotional side. And those were the parts that you really enjoyed? Completely, those are, that's why I got into this. You pay your dues with all the other stuff, the emails, the running the diary, the making the calls, taking calls, bookings, food shops, fan mail, that isn't me complaining.

All that is fine, but it's when you can be a strategic partner with the talent, when you can go into this kind of management role, that's the best. So many can't see the bad opportunities or the missteps because of ego. And I was getting good at reading what would be right for Penny and what would just be not as right for Penny and all this, so yeah, sorry, I've just gone on,

bleh, word explosion. No, no've just gone on bluh, word explosion. No, no, no, no, no, not at all. This is good. Um, so, a couple of years ago, she asked me to book in a set visit on the Lady Darth Investigate for this guy, Mr Peters. I go fine, yeah, booked him in, and he arrives. Visual description? Um, short, stocky, very like, sun-kissed. Sun-worn kinda, you know what I mean?

Glasses, clean shaven. I'm trying to think, wow. He had quite a lot of jewellery on him. Bracelets, necklace, rings? Yeah. Watch? Mm, and a gold tooth. Earrings?

Earring, single. The other ear was damaged. Like, uh, like cauliflower ear from rugby or boxing? No, it was kind of torn. The low barrier was kind of torn off. Okay. Was he talkative? No, not at all.

Did he threaten her? No. Did he? I mean, were they... Were they sleeping together? I don't think so. Then what is it, Marie? About this man, Mr. Peters? Okay, this is a secret and I just... You're not going to share this with anyone, are you? No. No, are you? No.

No, God, no, no. Two years ago, Penny was going to quit the show. Oh, wow. We had a whole game plan for her. There was this play she was going to do and a documentary about her lined up, a US talk show spot, few other bits and pieces. And that all stopped the second

Mr. Peters came into her life. She never mentioned it again. She never discussed things like that with me again. She did two more seasons as far as I'm aware she's gonna keep going and going and going. She's doing adverts and voiceovers and that and that is literally night and day from the Penny that I knew before he arrived. She was done with it. Done with that show. Honestly, he has some spell over her and I don't get it. I do not get it. He's a gross, chubby, shriveled up little weirdo and she's Penny Montgomery for fuck's sake. Sorry.

It's okay. It's okay. I want to give you one other thing. I've seen plenty of investigations in my time, believe me. And you guys seem to really care about how you conduct them. So, here. Oh, what's... what is that? It's a key.

To her flat. Oh. Hello! No one in. Come on. Hey! Wow! Oh wow. Big. Ho ho. Look at that view.

It's beautiful. You can see the eye there. Big Ben. Eye would be at this window all day long. Oh god, yeah, yeah. Wouldn't even bother with the TV to be honest. Oh, that's where I used to work. There. That's where Hudson's is. Oh, no way. What, the white tower? Uh, no, so that one with the flat roof next to the... Excuse me.

Sup, mate? Can we do some detective work, please? That's what's sup. Oh, yeah, sorry. Right, erm... Let me have a wee nose around the, er... The Bachelorette pad. Well, depending on what exactly was going on with Mr Peters, that is.

Erm... What have we got? Er... minimalism? Yep. Yeah, she have we got? Uh, minimalism? Yep. Yeah, she's a woman of simple tastes. She doesn't need fancy things. Exactly. Yeah, I can sort of deduce from my observations that she likes life to be uncluttered.

Straightforward. She's uncomplicated. Yes, yeah. That is so her, to be honest. Oh, so her. Look at these shelves. Not showing off her awards, not displaying some posh ornaments, just a couple of books. Not first editions or anything like that, just... Nothing ostentatious, how it should be.

And maybe that's why she has fallen for Mr Peters. He's simple. He's ordinary. She has tastes for... Oh, oh, she wants to quit the show and live a normal life Yes Yes, and she just wants some some normal slobby guy in some little cottage or something maybe in Europe Yeah, completely Completely and she wants to get out of this terrible lifestyle and focus on what matters. Oh

She is she's amazing amazing She wants to get out of this terrible lifestyle and focus on what matters. Ugh, she is... She's amazing. Amazing! What absolute bollocks. Whoa, what? You don't say bollocks, he says bollocks. Yes, well, I just said bollocks because that entire episode was worthy of its usage. Sherlock, look around. This is her life staring back at you.

I have looked around, and I have seen enough. Thank you. So we were right. No, you were completely wrong. Come on. I'm as flummoxed as you are as to where exactly you find yourselves. We all departed from the same starting point on our journey towards truth. But somehow you two have travelled so far in the complete opposite direction you now find yourselves at a destination totally and utterly remote from any discernible logic or accuracy.

That's quite a poetic way to call your two best friends idiots, Sherlock. I appreciate that. I get how we can be wrong, believe me. I get that. But how are we in some opposite land? Look, Sherlock, she has really basic stuff in this apartment. I will explain, but I really don't have the time or energy to talk you through it. Okay. All her jewellery is gone. Stolen? No, I'd say pawned. Don't interrupt.

Sorry. Ornaments, sculptures, artworks, an antique mirror from this wall, two bronze figures that stood just here, porcelain collectibles along that shelf, a gilded candelabra by the window, three rather ugly Louis XVI style chairs, silk embroidered cushions from that couch, a large enamel vase that should have been by that door there, a marble chess set and a custom perfumed acantaset that was on this surface here I believe. All gone. How do-

Correlate with the photos she has here, here, and those two there. A few on her bedside table and a picture montage in her bathroom. Images from her various parties and gatherings all depict the original, somewhat more opulent decor of this flat. So she sold it all? Indeed.

But why? For that we must depart for another destination. Oh yeah? Porn Shop? Not quite. Not yet, anyway. We may be able to take a shortcut. We must track her last known movements. But that would involve going to Switzerland, Sherlock. Then we shall go to Switzerland, Watson.

Chop chop! Quite brilliant. Yep. Yeah, quite smug too though. Mmm-hmm. To binge this adventure in full and without ads, go to patreon.com forward slash Sherlock and co. The I'm David Oleshoge. Here's that clip we mentioned earlier on. You see spiritualism kind of working its way up the social hierarchy, up the ladder of

respectability because people are desperate and they will cling to anything. And remember that we're still in an age of great religiosity. And so if kind of traditional Christian messages are not enough consolation, then you might seek something more direct like trying to speak to a lost loved one. It's also worth saying that historians have pointed out, I think this is really interesting, that in an age where telegraphy had just been invented, you suddenly have telegraphs which can send invisible messages across the ether, apparently. Almost magically. Almost magically. And suddenly people can receive them.

It's not really that much of a stretch to then start to imagine people receiving messages clairvoyantly. You start to think about telekinesis, you start to think about the idea of invisible movement of messages, invisible transmission. It's a really interesting idea, isn't it? I mean, I think it's a really, really smart idea and it suggests the ways in which other cultural factors can help influence those kinds of trends. Why would you suddenly believe in spiritualism? Well, if telegraphs, well, why not? Who says it's not possible, right? If you want to hear the full episode, listen to Journey Through Time wherever you get your podcasts.