[Mike]

Last evening I saw an episode of Lost Worlds that dealt with Edinburgh and Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

It was an enjoyable program, as it showed an hour's worth of tape taken in and around Edinburgh, one of my favorite places in the world. But the way Stevenson's book was tied to citizens of Edinburgh and even the city itself was interesting.

I suspect most people are aware of the the story of Jekyll and Hyde, pointing out the duality of man. And a large part of the program dealt with who the role model might have been for the book.

Could the book have been taken from the life of Deacon Brodie? This seems to be the favorite theory. William 'Deacon' Brodie certainly led a dual life, to be sure. And legend has it Stevenson's father allegedly owned furniture made by Brodie. In any case, it was enjoyable to see a bit of video taken of Deacon Brodie's Tavern on Lawnmarket in Edinburgh, a pub I have visited.

Another theory put forward was the possibility the book was patterned after William Burke and William Hare, murderers who sold bodies to a Dr. Robert Knox, for his anatomical studies. In the early 19th Century, if oine was aspiring to become a physician, then one must study in Edinburgh, which was felt to offer the best training. But cadavers were in short supply for all the anatomical studies taking place. So a new enterprise, that of body-snatching was born. Burke and Hare apparently felt waiting on someone to be buried was too burdensome, so they began killing people.

Another interesting theory was Dr. Robert Knox influenced Stevenson's book. If you read Stevenson's description of Dr. Jekyll's home, it matches up with Dr. Knox' home. 'Burke's the butcher, Hare's the thief and Knox is the boy who bought the beef.' It is interesting to note Hare testified against Burke, who was hung and dissected as his victims had been. Knox got off (dare I say it) Scot-free and moved to London to escape his deeds.

But one of the most interesting theories was the possibility that no person or persons provided the inspiration for Stevenson's book. Perhaps inspiration was provided by Edinburgh itself. The duality was pointed out by the comparison between the Old Town and New Town districts of Edinburgh. A lot of the video was shot of Mary King's Close and the South Bridge, to show how Edinburgh was quite literally built atop older structures. As one is walking at street level, it can be difficult to realize there are five, six and seven story buildings beneath the street level. Looking at depictions of living conditions in the Old Town district, it is not hard to see how Edinburgh earned the moniker of Auld Reekie.

All in all, the program was very interesting. If you can catch it coming on again, I highly recommend it.