The Adventures of Shirley Holmes facts for kids

The Adventures of Shirley Holmes is a Canadian mystery TV series. It aired from May 7, 1996, to May 7, 2001. The show was created by Ellis Iddon and Phil Meagher. It was filmed in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

The series follows Shirley Holmes, the great-great-niece of the famous detective Sherlock Holmes. She solves mysteries with her friend, Bo Sawchuk. They tackle many puzzles in and around the fictional city of Redington, Manitoba. Sometimes, Shirley even faces off against her clever rival, Molly Hardy.

The show was very popular and was shown in over 80 countries. It was translated into many languages, including French, Spanish, and German.

The actress who played Shirley, Meredith Henderson, won a Gemini Award in 1999 for her role. The show itself also won a Gemini Award in 1999 for "Best Children's or Youth Program or Series." Other writers for the show also won awards for their amazing scripts.

Meet the Characters

Main Characters

• Shirley Holmes (played by Meredith Henderson): Shirley is the main character and a super-smart detective. She is the great-great-niece of Sherlock Holmes. Shirley uses her ancestor's skills like deductive reasoning to solve crimes. She is very observant and often wears different hats. She likes to keep her detective work a secret.

• Francis Boris "Bo" Sawchuk (played by John White): Bo is Shirley's loyal sidekick and best friend. He used to be part of a group that caused trouble. He met Shirley in detention and was amazed by her detective skills. Shirley helped him when he was wrongly accused of setting a fire. After that, they became a detective team, much like Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Bo is often mistaken for Shirley's boyfriend. He leaves for Ukraine at the end of the series to study more.

• Molly Hardy (played by Sarah Ezer): Molly is Shirley's main rival. She is very smart and tricky, like Sherlock Holmes's enemy, Professor Moriarty. Molly tries to cause trouble and often schemes to get her way. She is very clever and has a high IQ. Shirley often stops her plans, but Molly usually avoids getting caught.

• Alicia Gianelli (played by Annick Obonsawin): Alicia is a good friend of Shirley and Bo. She works at the Quazar Cafe. She can sometimes be easily influenced by others and cares a lot about material things.

• Sterling "Stink" Patterson (played by Brendan Fletcher): Stink is the class clown and loves to play pranks. His parents own a novelty store. While he causes trouble, he is not as mean as Molly. He is like Sebastian Moran, another character from the Sherlock Holmes stories.

• Bartholemew "Bart" James (played by Blair Slater): Bart is a nerdy friend of Shirley and Bo. He is very interested in strange things like aliens and the paranormal. He is also very serious about his schoolwork. Bart knows about Shirley's detective work and sometimes helps her.

• Robert Holmes (played by Chris Humphreys): Robert is Shirley's father and the great-nephew of Sherlock Holmes. He often worries about Shirley getting involved in dangerous cases.

• Peggy "Gran" Holmes (played by Elizabeth Shepherd): Peggy is Shirley's grandmother and Sherlock Holmes's niece.

• Ms. Cynthia Stratmann (played by Marie Stillin): She is the headmistress of Sussex Academy, Shirley's school. She is a hardworking and proper woman. She is friends with Mr. Howie and supports Molly Hardy, not knowing Molly's true intentions.

• Mr. Arthur Howie (played by Colin Fox): Mr. Howie is Shirley's history teacher at Sussex Academy. He used to be a student there himself. He has a fear of children, which is called kinder-phobia.

• Dr. Joanna Holmes (played by Maggie Huculak): Dr. Joanna Holmes is Shirley's mother. She was missing for several years after being in Rwanda during a civil war. She is reunited with Shirley and Robert later in the series. Shirley gets her curiosity and determination from her mother.

Supporting and Recurring Characters

• Parker (played by R. Morgan Slade): A classmate of Shirley who hangs out with her friends but is rarely involved in cases.
• Watson the Dog (played by Nathan): Shirley's pet dog.
• Mrs. Fish (played by Helen Roupp): The secretary at Sussex Academy.
• Detective Tremain (played by Michael Puttonen): A detective who is often wrong about his guesses. Shirley usually solves the case instead of him.
• Inspector Marquee (played by Phillip Jarrett): An inspector who often follows Bo.
• Frank Patterson (played by Jay Brazeau): Stink's father.
• Daniel Devine (played by Jonas Chernick): An artist who blamed Stink's dog for cat disappearances.
• Jarrod (played by Dave 'Squatch' Ward): A motorcyclist who helps Ms. Stratmann in one episode.
• Norman Melter (played by Kett Turton): An eccentric guy who replaces Stink in later episodes.
• Heather (played by Leslie Wolos): A student at Sussex Academy who starts dating Bo in the last episode.
• Bai Sung (played by Jennifer Lin): A girl with a secret who becomes Bo's love interest.
• Matt (played by Bill Switzer): Shirley's love interest. They don't get along at first but realize they have a lot in common.

Guest Stars

Many actors appeared as guest stars, including:

• Ryan Gosling as Sean
• John Neville as Dr. O. Henry
• Diana Leblanc as Rebecca Ratcliff
• Shelley Duvall as Alice Flitt
• Brennan Elliott as Jake Bain
• Lisa Ryder as Jenny Bain
• Crystal Lowe as Pascal

Episode Guide

The show has 52 episodes spread across four seasons. Here are some highlights from each season:

Season 1

• The Case Of The Burning Building (May 7, 1997): Shirley investigates when Bo Sawchuk is suspected of starting fires at Sussex Academy.
• The Case Of The Ruby Ring (May 14, 1997): Shirley looks into an incident at a school election, where Stink Patterson is the main suspect.
• The Case Of The Liberated Beasts (May 21, 1997): Shirley's dog, Watson, leads her to a break-in at a pet store.
• The Case Of The Alien Abductions (June 4, 1997): Shirley investigates strange attacks where victims claim aliens are involved.
• The Case Of The Maestro's Ghost (June 18, 1997): Shirley tries to solve the mystery of a ghost that appears every year at the school.
• The Case Of The Singer's Secret (July 23, 1997): Shirley is surprised to find her dad kissing a pop star and investigates.

Season 2

• The Case Of The Wannabe Witch (January 5, 1998): Shirley wonders if the school librarian is a witch after strange things happen.
• The Case Of The Doggone Cats (January 12, 1998): Stink's dog is blamed for disappearing cats, and Shirley must prove his innocence.
• The Case Of The Bouncing Baby (January 26, 1998): Shirley and Bo join a circus to find out who left a baby on Mr. Howie's doorstep.
• The Case Of The Missing Marbles (February 23, 1998): Shirley and Bo are chased by a criminal while trying to find stolen diamonds.
• The Case Of The Left Thumbprint (March 9, 1998): Shirley defends her father when he is accused of stealing a secret government key.

Season 3

• The Case Of The Celestial Signal (September 14, 1998): Bart hears signals from space, and Shirley discovers the man in charge of the observatory is not who he seems.
• The Case Of The Crooked Comic (September 28, 1998): Molly and Stink are accused of stealing exam questions, leading Stink to try stand-up comedy.
• The Case Of The Mysterious Message (October 12, 1998): Shirley gets a message that her grandmother has been kidnapped.
• The Case Of The Bamboozling Blonde (November 2, 1998): Mrs. Stratmann is arrested for fraud, but Shirley believes she is being framed.
• The Case Of The Miraculous Mine (November 30, 1998): Clues about Shirley's missing mother appear from a ruby mine in Rwanda.
• The Case Of The Forbidden Mountain (December 7, 1998): Shirley and her dad go to Rwanda to find more information about her mother.

Season 4

• The Case Of The Calculated Crime (February 13, 2000): Math classes are stopped at school, and Shirley investigates why.
• The Case Of The Dead Debutante (February 20, 2000): A ghost tries to make Alicia harm Mr. Howie.
• The Case Of The Vanishing Virus (February 27, 2000): A dangerous virus sample is stolen from a lab.
• The Basket Case (March 12, 2000): Shirley investigates strange incidents that stop the school's basketball team from winning.
• The Case Of The Skeleton in the Closet (March 19, 2000): Shirley finds a skeleton and suspects something is wrong when the coroner ignores a key detail.
• The Case Of The Desperate Dancer (April 16, 2000): Bo learns a family secret when a dancer steals a religious item.
• The Case Of The Dragon's Breath (May 7, 2000): Bo gets caught up in a real-life adventure game.

Music and Fun Facts

Music of the Show

The original music for The Adventures of Shirley Holmes was created by Terry Frewer. However, the catchy theme song was written and performed by the show's creators, Ellis Iddon and Phil Meagher.

Fun Facts About the Cast

• Meredith Henderson, who played Shirley, was the only actor to appear in every single episode of the series.
• John White, who played Bo, missed one episode, "The Case Of The Forbidden Mountain," but his character was mentioned.
• Elizabeth Shepherd, who played Peggy Holmes (Shirley's grandmother), stopped appearing after "The Case Of The Forbidden Mountain." It was explained that she went on vacation to the Fiji Islands.
• Brendan Fletcher, who played "Stink" Patterson, left the series without a clear explanation in the show. His last appearance was in "The Case Of The Crooked Comic."
• The episode "The Case Of The Puzzle from the Past" was special because Shirley and Bo remembered many characters who were no longer in the series. It used clips from older episodes.