Inspector Lestrade - Depiction in Derivatives and Adaptations

Depiction in Derivatives and Adaptations

The author M. J. Trow wrote a series of sixteen books using Lestrade as the central character, beginning with The Adventures of Inspector Lestrade in 1985. In these stories, Trow shows Lestrade to be a more than capable detective. He is given a first name, "Sholto", a young daughter whom he seldom sees, and a series of adventures set against a historical backdrop. In one book Lestrade meets G. K. Chesterton and in another he suffers a broken leg in a fall from the gangplank of the RMS Titanic.

Lestrade's lack of ability is frequently exaggerated in adaptations, which often characterise him as a bumbling idiot. Notably, Dennis Hoey played Lestrade in most of the Sherlock Holmes films from Universal Pictures starring Basil Rathbone as Holmes. This version had the Yard man as a well-meaning fool patronised by the detective, whose help he greatly appreciated, rather in the manner of that series' version of Doctor Watson (Nigel Bruce). Lestrade is nonetheless a capable officer, and Holmes never questions his honesty or his willingness to solve a case. In the book Sherlock Holmes: The Man and His World by H.R.F. Keating, Keating notes that despite Holmes' accusations of his lack of observational skills, he knows Holmes craves the outré and uses this to collect his interest in the case of "The Adventure of the Six Napoleons".