Off the Shelf: The Mysterious Case of the Victorian Female Detective - Sara Lodge

From Wilkie Collins to Sherlock Holmes, the traditional image of the Victorian detective is male. But women detectives successfully investigated Victorian Britain, working with the police and private agencies, which they sometimes managed themselves.

Sara Lodge recovers these forgotten women’s lives including a detective from Sheffield. She explores the sensational role played by the fantasy female detective in Victorian melodrama and popular fiction, enthralling a public who relished the spectacle of a cross-dressing, fist-swinging heroine getting the better of love rats, burglars and murderers.  

This event is part of Off the Shelf: Festival of Words from the University of Sheffield. The full festival programme is available here: https://offtheshelf.org.uk/events/ 

The event is organised by the Off the Shelf Festival. Views expressed at this event do not reflect those of Sheffield Museums.