Teaching now. Yeah, bright young things like we used to be.

God, I hate them.

What about you? Just staying in town until you get yourself sorted?

Can't afford London on an army pension.

And you couldn't bear to be anywhere else.

That's not the John Watson I know. Yeah, I'm not the John Watson.

Couldn't Harry help?

Yeah, like that's gonna happen.

I don't know. Get a flat share or something?

Come on. Who'd want me for a flatmate?

What? You're the second person to say that to me today.

Who's the first?

How fresh. Just in.

67 natural causes.

Used to work here. I knew him. He was nice.

Fine. We'll start with the riding crop.

So, bad day, was it?

I need to know what bruises form in the next 20 minutes.

A man's alibi depends on it. Text me.

Listen, I was wondering, maybe later, when you're finished...

You weren't wearing lipstick. You weren't wearing lipstick before.

I, er... I refreshed it a bit.

Sorry, you were saying?

I was wondering if you'd like to have coffee.

No, thanks.

I was wondering if you'd like to have coffee.

Black two sugars, please. I'll be upstairs.

OK.

A bit different from my day.

You've no idea.

Mike, can I borrow your phone? There's no signal on mine.

What's wrong with the landline?

I prefer to text.

Sorry. It's in my coat.

Er, here.

Use mine.

Oh. Thank you.

It's an old friend of mine, John Watson.

Afghanistan or Iraq?

Sorry? Which was it, Afghanistan or Iraq?

Afghanistan. Sorry, how did you...?

Ah, Molly, coffee. Thank you.

What happened to the lipstick?

It wasn't working for me. Really?

I thought it was a big improvement. Your mouth's too small now.

OK.

How do you feel about the violin?

Sorry, what?

I play the violin when I'm thinking.

Sometimes I don't talk for days on end.

Would that bother you? Potential flatmates should know the worst about each other.

You told him about me?

Not a word.

Then who said anything about flatmates?

I did. I told Mike this morning that I must be a difficult man to find a flatmate for.

Now here he is, just after lunch with an old friend, clearly just home from military service in Afghanistan.

Wasn't a difficult leap.

How did you know about Afghanistan?

Got my eye on a nice little place in central London.

Together we ought to be able to afford it.

We'll meet there tomorrow evening, seven o'clock.

Sorry, I've got to dash. I think I left my riding crop in the mortuary.

Is that it?

Is that what?

We've only just met and we're going to go look at a flat.

Problem?

We don't know a thing about each other.

I don't know where we're meeting. I don't even know your name.

I know you're an army doctor and you've been admitted home from Afghanistan.

I know you've got a brother who's worried about you, but you won't go to him for help because you don't approve of him.

Possibly because he's an alcoholic.

More likely because he recently had a heart attack.

And possibly because he's an alcoholic.

More likely because he recently walked out on his wife.

And I know that your therapist thinks your limp's psychosomatic.

Quite correctly, I'm afraid.

That's enough to be going on with, don't you think?

The name's Sherlock Holmes and the address is 221B Baker Street.