Mycroft Holmes - References in Popular Culture

References in Popular Culture

Mycroft is also sometimes referred to less directly in popular culture:

• A parallel can be observed in the TV series Monk in the connection between fictional obsessive-compulsive detective Adrian Monk and his more intelligent, though more neurotic and agoraphobic brother Ambrose. Like Mycroft, Ambrose is more intelligent than his brother but is less willing to investigate (though this is because he is agoraphobic). Ambrose, however, does not need to see a crime scene as Adrian does.
• Mycroft was parodied in the Solar Pons series with a character named Bancroft Stoneham Pons, who was also seven years older than the leading protagonist.
• Mycroft Holmes was the inspiration for the name of the silent assistant quiz master of BBC Radio 4's programme Brain of Britain. The phrase "Mycroft is shaking his head" became well known to listeners. Ian Gillies (who was known as Mycroft) died in 2002 and was replaced by a character known as "Jorkins".
• Mycroft was the inspiration for the name of a character in Robert A. Heinlein's The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress: "Mycroft" a.k.a. Mike, a H.O.L.M.E.S. ("High-Optional, Logical, Multi-Evaluating Supervisor") Mark 4, a sentient computer. At one point in the story, Mike indicates Sherlock is indeed his brother.
• The character of the Marquis of London in Randall Garrett's Lord Darcy stories, while mostly based on Nero Wolfe, also has elements of Mycroft, in that he is a government official related to the detective and, while just as intelligent as his relative, has little interest in using his intellect to solve crimes.
• First series of seaQuest DSV, in the episode "Photon Bullet", a reformed computer hacker used the handle "Mycroft" while at an underwater telecommunications node.
• British writer Colin Dexter, author of the Inspector Morse series of books, wrote a Sherlock Holmes short story "A Case of Mis-Identity", part of a collection of short stories published under the title "Morse's Greatest Mystery", in which Watson's practical knowledge of the circumstances of a case outwits both Sherlock and Mycroft.
• Agatha Christie in The Big Four introduced "Achille Poirot, the brother of Hercule Poirot". This is considered a deliberate parody of Mycroft Holmes. (In one passage, Hercule Poirot actually says: "Don't you know that every detective has a brother who is smarter but less practical than himself?") Later in the book, Christie gives the impression that in fact "Achille" was Poirot himself in disguise. The Holmes brothers are mentioned again in The Labors Of Hercules, in which one of Poirot's friends teases him about his unusual Christian name. He jokes that Mrs. Poirot and Mrs. Holmes must have collaborated when naming their sons.
• In John Dickson Carr's "Sir Henry Merrivale" novels, the brilliant, overweight Military Intelligence chief is compared to Mycroft Holmes, much to his annoyance.
• A resemblance has been noted between Mycroft Holmes and Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe; it has been suggested that they may have been related. There no evidence that Stout himself intended this to be the case. The best-known form of this hypothesis — popularised by William S. Baring-Gould, who wrote "biographies" of both Sherlock Holmes and Nero Wolfe — holds that Wolfe is the offspring of Sherlock and Irene Adler.
• At one point it was planned for Gregory House (who is based on Sherlock Holmes) to have an elder brother who was based on Mycroft. Stephen Fry (who was the comedic partner of Hugh Laurie) was to play him but was unable, due to other commitments. Fry did take on the role of Mycroft in the sequel to the 2009 Sherlock Holmes film.
• In the TV series Numb3rs episode Angels and Devils, Larry Fleinhardt, played by Peter MacNicol, says: "I have rather always fancied myself more as a Mycroft than a Dr. Watson." He expands upon this reference in the series finale when he assumes the role of math/science expert for the FBI in place of Charlie Eppes saying, "...like Sherlock's brother Mycroft Holmes, I prefer to do the conceptualizing, leaving the grunt work to others."
• In Nobuhiro Watsuki's manga series Embalming -The Another Tale of Frankenstein-, Asuhit Richter goes to the Diogenes Club in London to meet one of the club's founders and his client "Mike Roft", a play on Mycroft, who is also a high-standing government official. Mike remarks that "if you are looking for someone, my younger brother is quite good at that type of thing" and has him locate Dr. Peabody and Fury Flatliner. Only the younger brother's silhouette is shown, but it is obviously that of Sherlock Holmes.
• In the Honor Harrington novel A Rising Thunder, the name Mycroft is used as the code designation for a new Manticoran missile fire control system to be deployed for system defense, based somewhat upon the Havenites' 'Moriarty' system (the name of which is a reference to Professor Moriarty).