All episode transcripts in full 12 page

DOCTORS’ SURGERY. The receptionist looks up apologetically at the first person in a queue of patients waiting to speak to her.
RECEPTIONIST: I’m sorry to keep you waiting.
(Someone in the queue sighs pointedly.)
RECEPTIONIST: But we haven’t got anything now ’til next Thursday.
(The woman at the front of the queue turns aside with an exasperated look on her face.)
WOMAN’s VOICE (offscreen): This is taking ages.
RECEPTIONIST: Er, sorry.
(Sarah Sawyer has been walking through the waiting room but now turns back and comes over to the reception.)
WOMAN’s VOICE (offscreen): What’s the point of making an appointment if they can’t even stick to it?
SARAH (to the receptionist): Um, what’s going on?
RECEPTIONIST (quietly): That new doctor you hired – he hasn’t buzzed the intercom for ages.
SARAH: Let me go and have a word.
RECEPTIONIST: Yeah, thanks.
SARAH (to the queue as she walks away): ’Scuse me.
RECEPTIONIST (to the queue): Sorry.
WOMAN’s VOICE (offscreen): What did she just say?
(Sarah goes to John’s consulting room and knocks on the door.)
SARAH: John?
(She waits a few seconds but gets no reply.)
SARAH: John?
(When there’s still no reply, she opens the door and looks inside. John is sitting behind the desk, his head propped up on one fist, and is fast asleep and snoring gently.)

Much later, he comes out of his consulting room putting on his coat and walks over to Sarah who is standing behind the reception desk. He clears his throat awkwardly.
JOHN: Um, looks like I’m done. I thought I had some more to see.
SARAH: Oh, I did one or two of yours.
JOHN: One or two?
SARAH: Well, maybe five or six.
JOHN: I’m sorry. That’s not very professional.
SARAH: No. No, not really.
JOHN: I had, um, a bit of a late one.
SARAH: Oh, right.
JOHN: Anyway, see you.
(He turns to walk away.)
SARAH: So, um, what were you doing to keep you up so late?
JOHN (turning back to her): Uh, I was, er, attending a sort of book event.
SARAH: Oh. Oh, she likes books, does she, your ... your girlfriend?
(She looks down fake-nonchalantly.)
JOHN: Mmm? No, it wasn’t a date.
SARAH (too quickly): Good. (She rapidly tries to cover.) I mean, um ...
JOHN: And I don’t have one tonight.
(They smile at each other, John looking down almost in disbelief as if thinking, ‘Oh good grief, I’ve just pulled!’)

221B. Sherlock is still working on the crates but now tries a different tack.
SHERLOCK: A book that everybody would own.
(He turns to his bookcase and pulls down the Concise Oxford English Dictionary, the Holy Bible and a third book which we can’t see the title of. Putting them on top of the nearest crate, he opens the dictionary to the correct page.)
SHERLOCK: Fifteen. Entry one.
(The word is “add”. He moves on to the last book he took down, which some fantastic research by donutgirl has revealed is called “Syphilis and local contagious disorders” by Berkeley Hill. [And, as she points out, just why does Sherlock think that this is ‘a book that everybody would own’?!] The first word on page 15 is “nostrils”. Putting that aside and flicking to page 15 of the Bible, partway through the Book of Genesis, the first word is “I”. As he closes the book, and John’s bedroom door slams shut, he props his elbows on the crate and runs his fingers through his hair, ruffling it up. I’m sure this has nothing to do with the imminent arrival of his flatmate, who now walks into the room having changed into clean clothes.)
SHERLOCK: I need to get some air. We’re going out tonight.
JOHN: Actually, I’ve, er, got a date.
(He smiles smugly.)
SHERLOCK: What?
JOHN: It’s where two people who like each other go out and have fun.
SHERLOCK: That’s what I was suggesting.
JOHN: No it wasn’t ... at least I hope not.
SHERLOCK (looking sulky): Where are you taking her?
JOHN: Er, cinema.
SHERLOCK: Oh, dull, boring, predictable.
(He has taken a piece of paper from his trouser pocket as he walks across to John, and lowers his head to hide a smug smile before handing it to him.)
SHERLOCK: Why don’t you try this?
(John takes it and looks at the piece of paper, which is the strip of poster that Sherlock tore off the wall during the search for the yellow paint. The poster advertises the Yellow Dragon Circus and gives the telephone number of the Box Office.)
SHERLOCK: In London for one night only.
(John chuckles, then offers the paper back to Sherlock.)
JOHN: Thanks, but I don’t come to you for dating advice.

EVENING. John and Sarah are walking up the slope towards a building.
SARAH: It’s years since anyone took me to the circus.
JOHN (chuckling nervously): Right, yes! Well, it’s ... a friend recommended it to me. He phoned up.
SARAH: Ah. What are they, a touring company or something?
JOHN: I don’t know much about it.
(They pause and look at a number of large red Chinese lanterns strung outside the hall.)
SARAH: I think they’re probably from China!
JOHN: Yes, I think ... I think so, yes. (Quietly) There’s a coincidence(!)
(They go inside to the Box Office where the manager is giving a customer her tickets.)
CUSTOMER: That’s wonderful. Thank you very much.
MANAGER: Okay.
(The customer turns and walks up the nearby stairs and John goes over to the office.)
JOHN: Hi. I have, er, two tickets reserved for tonight.
MANAGER: And what’s the name?
JOHN (taking his wallet from his jacket): Er, Holmes.
(The manager rifles through the reservations, then turns back to him with an envelope.)
MANAGER: Actually, I have three in that name.
JOHN: No, I don’t think so. We only booked two.
SHERLOCK (offscreen): And then I phoned back and got one for myself as well.
(John looks up in disbelief and turns as Sherlock walks over to them, looking at Sarah. He offers her his hand.)
SHERLOCK: I’m Sherlock.
(Sarah glances at John momentarily, then turns back to the new arrival and shakes his hand a little nervously. John turns away in exasperation.)
SARAH: Er, hi.
SHERLOCK: Hello.
(He gives her his fake smile, then instantly turns and walks away.)

Not long afterwards the boys are standing a few steps up the stairs while people make their way past them. Sarah isn’t with them – presumably she has nipped off to the loo. The boys keep their voices down as they talk.
JOHN: You couldn’t let me have just one night off?
SHERLOCK: Yellow Dragon Circus, in London for one day. It fits. The Tong sent an assassin to England ...
JOHN: ... dressed as a tightrope walker. Come on, Sherlock, behave!
SHERLOCK: We’re looking for a killer who can climb, who can shin up a rope. Where else would you find that level of dexterity? Exit visas are scarce in China. They need a pretty good reason to get out of that country. Now, all I need to do is have a quick look round the place ...
JOHN: Fine. You do that; I’m gonna take Sarah for a pint.
SHERLOCK (sternly): I need your help.
JOHN: I do have a couple of other things on my mind this evening!
SHERLOCK: Like what?
(John blinks, staring at him in disbelief.)
JOHN: You are kidding.
SHERLOCK: What’s so important?
JOHN: Sherlock, I’m right in the middle of a date. D’you want me to chase some killer while I’m trying to ...
(He breaks off.)
SHERLOCK: What?
JOHN (losing his patience and talking much louder): ... while I’m trying to get off with Sarah!
(And inevitably Sarah comes around the corner at that moment. John turns to her and smiles awkwardly.)
JOHN: Heyyy.
(Rolling his eyes, Sherlock turns and heads up the stairs.)
JOHN (to Sarah): Ready?
SARAH: Yeah!
(They follow Sherlock up the stairs.)

In the performance area there’s a stage on one side of the large hall and the curtains are closed. However, it seems that the stage is not going to be used: a circle of candles has been laid out in the middle of the floor, about thirty feet in diameter. The room is dimly lit. The patrons are gathering around the circle but there are no seats. Apparently the number of tickets has been limited and there’s room for everyone to stand around the circle with a clear view. Sarah and John stand side by side while Sherlock stands behind them with his back to them, looking all around the room and peering up to the ceiling. John talks quietly over his shoulder to his flatmate, turning his head away from Sarah so that she can’t hear.
JOHN: You said circus. This is not a circus. Look at the size of this crowd. Sherlock, this is ... (he grimaces with distaste) ... art.
SHERLOCK (quietly over his shoulder): This is not their day job.
JOHN: No, sorry, I forgot. They’re not a circus; they’re a gang of international smugglers.
(The performance begins with someone tapping out a rhythm on a tiny hand drum. Sherlock turns to face the same way as his companions and John looks over his shoulder at him. Sherlock quirks an eyebrow at him. An ornately costumed Chinese woman with a heavily painted face – traditionally known as the Opera Singer – walks into the centre of the circle and looks imperiously out at the audience before raising a hand in the air. The drummer finishes his riff. The Opera Singer walks across the circle to a large object covered with a cloth which she now pulls back to reveal an antique-looking crossbow on a stand. She picks up a long thick wooden arrow with white feathers at one end and a vicious metal point at the other and shows it to the audience before fitting it into place in the crossbow. Straightening up, she pulls a single small white feather from her headdress and again shows it to the audience. On the rear of the crossbow is a small metal cup and she gently drops the feather into it. Instantly the arrow is released and whizzes across the room. Sherlock’s head whips around to follow its flight while John and Sarah are still gasping at the sound of the arrow’s release. By the time they look round a moment later, the arrow is embedded in a large painted board on the other side of the circle. Sarah turns to John and laughs, dramatically putting her hand over her heart.
Instrumental music begins, and the audience applauds as a new character enters the circle, wearing chainmail and an ornate head mask. He holds his arms out to the sides and two men come over and start to attach heavy chains and straps to him, strapping his now-folded arms in front of him and then backing him up against the board and starting to chain him to it.)
SHERLOCK (softly): Classic Chinese escapology act.
(John and Sarah turn to him.)
JOHN: Hmm?
SHERLOCK: The crossbow’s on a delicate string. The warrior has to escape his bonds before it fires.
(The Opera Singer loads another arrow into the crossbow. The men attach more padlocks and chains and one of them pulls a chain tight, yanking the warrior’s head back against the board. The warrior cries out. The men loop the chains through solid rings attached to the board and secure the warrior, who cries out again. Once they’ve finished, they step away. The music begins building in intensity and cymbals crash unexpectedly. Sarah jumps, clutching at John’s arm.)
SARAH: Oh, Gawd! I’m sorry!
(She laughs in embarrassment, taking his arm with her other hand as well. John laughs with her, then smiles delightedly as she lets go with her more distant hand but continues to hold onto his arm with the other. The Opera Singer picks up a small knife and displays it to the audience.)
SHERLOCK (softly): She splits the sandbag; the sand pours out; gradually the weight lowers into the bowl.
(The Opera Singer does just what Sherlock predicted – she reaches up to a small sandbag hanging on a long cable and stabs the knife into the bottom of the sack. Sand begins to pour out, and the warrior repeatedly cries out with effort as he tugs at his chains. The sandbag’s cable is looped over a pulley and a metal ball is attached to the other end. As the sand continues to pour out of the bag the weight lowers towards the bowl at the back of the crossbow. The warrior gets one hand free. John is watching the weight lower, and Sarah now looks nervously at it as it crosses paths with the sandbag on its way up. They turn to look at the warrior as he gets his other hand free and starts tugging at the chains around his neck. The weight is now only a few feet above the bowl and Sarah clings tightly to John’s arm, grimacing. The warrior cries out again as he pulls at his chains and the weight gets ever closer. As it almost reaches the lip of the bowl the warrior loosens the chains around his neck and struggles to free himself.
The weight touches the bowl and the arrow streaks across the room. With a split second to spare, the warrior pulls free of the chains and ducks down and the arrow thuds into the board. The warrior cries out triumphantly as the audience begins to applaud. Sarah gasps in relief.)
SARAH: Thank God.
JOHN: My God!
(The warrior stands up and takes the applause. Still clapping, John looks over his shoulder, but Sherlock has vanished. John looks around the hall but can’t see him anywhere.)
(Sherlock has made his way onto the stage, which is being used as the performers’ dressing room. There’s a dressing table with mirrors, free-standing clothes rails and many other items all around. He looks at everything and notices that it’s almost as if another warrior is standing nearby – except that the chainmail and mask are hanging on a stand.
In the performance area, the Opera Singer raises a hand to halt the audience’s applause.)
OPERA SINGER: Ladies and gentlemen, from the distant moonlight shores of the Yangtze River, we present for your pleasure the deadly Chinese bird-spider.
(As she walks away, a masked acrobat descends from the ceiling, rolling through the air as the broad red band wrapped around his waist unravels. The audience applauds and he stops a couple of feet above the ground, holding his body parallel to the floor.)
JOHN (to Sarah): Did you see that?!
(Descending to the floor, the acrobat removes the band from around his waist and splits it, revealing that it’s made up of two strips of material which he now wraps around his arms and then runs around the circle before taking his weight on the bands, lifting into the air and flying around in a circle several feet above the ground, the red bands soaring out behind him. Sarah and John – and presumably the rest of the audience – stare up open-mouthed.
On the stage, Sherlock goes over to the curtains and parts them slightly to look out at the performance. He looks with interest at the acrobat as he floats around.)
SHERLOCK (softly): Well, well.
(To the right of the stage, a door opens. Sherlock runs to take cover, pushing through the middle of the clothes on the clothes rail and then quickly spreading the items out again as the Opera Singer comes onto the stage. She goes over to the dressing table and picks up a mobile phone, checking it, but looks round sharply when one of the hangars on the rail falls to the floor. Sherlock ducks down. The Opera Singer walks toward the rail and Sherlock crouches even lower but she continues on and leaves the stage. Sherlock looks down and sees a bag on the floor near his feet. Flipping it open, he finds several spray cans inside. He picks up one of them and sees that it is labelled “Michigan.” A yellow band is across the bottom of the can denoting the colour of the paint.)
SHERLOCK (softly, in a sing-song voice): Found you.
(Standing up, he pushes through the clothes on the rail and walks over to the mirrors on the dressing table, shaking up the can as he goes. He bends down and sprays a single almost-horizontal yellow line across one of the mirrors. As he looks at it, the warrior’s costume behind him starts to move. Frowning, he turns around and realises that the costume is no longer on a stand and now has a man inside it. The man charges forward, lashing out at him repeatedly with a large knife. Sherlock ducks backwards to avoid the blows as the warrior presses forward.
Outside, John and Sarah are still watching the acrobat. On the other side of the circle, the closed curtains on the stage begin to billow in one particular place. John frowns at the curtains for a moment but is then distracted back to the acrobat.
On the stage, Sherlock uses the can he’s holding as a bit of a weapon, using it to block a blow from the warrior, ducking below the next swing of the man’s knife, then clouting the can across the man’s elbow. The warrior responds by kicking him hard in the stomach.
Outside, the acrobat does a dramatic roll down the bands. The audience applauds. Unnoticed, the curtains billow even more.
The warrior grabs Sherlock by the throat but drops his knife in the process. Sherlock lashes the man’s hand away from the neck and then sprays the can directly into his masked face before bundling into him and shoving him away firmly. The warrior falls onto his back but uses his momentum to raise his legs and then roll forward and flip to his feet again. He takes a flying leap at Sherlock, spinning as he goes and his feet hit him in the chest. Sherlock is propelled backwards through the curtains, straight over the edge of the stage and onto the floor a few feet below. Crashing onto his back, he struggles to get upright again but is too winded and can’t move much as the warrior comes flying out of the curtains and onto the floor in front of him. John is on the move straightaway, running towards the warrior as he raises a knife and prepares to plunge it downwards. John charges straight into him, pushing him back against the edge of the stage but the warrior lashes out with one foot, sending John stumbling across the room.
Nearby, as the audience flees, the acrobat takes off his mask, takes one look at the fight and decides he wants no part of it, running off. Only one person is heading towards the fight and that’s Sarah, who has pulled the large arrow from the painted board and comes charging across the hall while John is still stumbling across the floor trying to catch his balance and the warrior heads towards Sherlock who is still lying on the floor winded – and the warrior now has a wide-bladed sword in one hand. As he raises the sword above his head, his concentration focussed on delivering the killing blow to the man at his feet, Sarah races across the floor and slams one end of the arrow over the top of the warrior’s head. He cries out in pain and before he can react or retaliate she swings the arrow sideways and smashes it across his ribs. She instantly delivers a second blow to the same area and he falls to the ground, grunting and almost unconscious.
As Sarah straightens up, breathless, Sherlock finally gets off his lazy arse sits up and leans forward to the warrior’s right foot, pulling off his shoe to reveal a Tong tattoo on his heel. John has finally managed to turn around, though he’s almost doubled over in pain and is still trying to catch his breath. As Sherlock scrambles to his feet John grabs Sarah’s hand and starts to pull her towards the exit.)
JOHN (almost voicelessly): Come on.
(Sherlock races off ahead of them.)
SHERLOCK: Come on! Let’s go!

NEW SCOTLAND YARD. D.I. Dimmock storms into the office, followed by the boys and a rather bewildered Sarah. Dimmock is clearly not in a good mood.
DIMMOCK: I sent a couple of cars. The old hall is totally deserted.
SHERLOCK: Look, I saw the mark at the circus – that tattoo that we saw on the two bodies: the mark of the Tong.
(Dimmock has reached his desk and has turned to face the others.)
JOHN: Lukis and Van Coon were part of a-a smuggling operation. Now, one of them stole something when they were in China; something valuable.
SHERLOCK: These circus performers were gang members sent here to get it back.
DIMMOCK: Get what back?
(Sherlock bites his lip, looking away angrily.)
JOHN (hesitantly): We don’t know.
DIMMOCK: You don’t know.
(Sherlock still won’t meet his eyes.)
DIMMOCK: Mr Holmes ...
(He sits down, while your transcriber wants to hug him very much for being the only person other than herself who she has ever heard sound the ‘L’ in ‘Holmes.’)
DIMMOCK: I’ve done everything you asked. Lestrade, he seems to think your advice is worth something.
(Sherlock lifts his head and gives a faint but proud smile.)
DIMMOCK: I gave the order for a raid. Please tell me I’ll have something to show for it – other than a massive bill for overtime.

221B. Sherlock leads John and Sarah into the living room and immediately stares at the pictures over the fireplace as he takes his coat off.
JOHN: They’ll be back in China by tomorrow.
SHERLOCK: No, they won’t leave without what they came for. We need to find their hide-out; the rendezvous.
(He walks closer to the photos, staring at them intensely. John also gazes at the pictures while Sarah hovers nearby, forgotten by the pair of them. Sherlock runs his fingers over the main picture of the painted brick wall.)
SHERLOCK: Somewhere in this message it must tell us.
(He and John fall silent. Sarah looks at them for a moment, then realises that she is surplus to requirements.)
SARAH: Well, I think perhaps I should leave you to it.
JOHN: No, no, you don’t have to go ... (he looks round at Sherlock) ... does she? (He turns back to Sarah.) You can stay.
SHERLOCK (simultaneously): Yes, it would be better to study if you left now.
(He looks round pointedly at Sarah, while John throws a dark look at him before turning back to her.)
JOHN: He’s kidding. Please stay if you’d like.
(Sarah looks nervously towards Sherlock, who has already turned back to the photographs. She smiles awkwardly and tries what she thinks is a friendly approach.)
SARAH: Is it just me, or is anyone else starving?
SHERLOCK (sighing and closing his eyes in exasperation): Ooh, God.

Shortly afterwards, John opens the fridge to find it almost empty apart from a couple of bottles, a can, and what might well be an eyeball lying on a shelf. He sighs.
In the living room, Sherlock has sat down at the dining table which is covered with photos, notes and drawings of various pictograms. As he rummages through them, Sarah stands nearby, looking at all the pictures stuck to the mirror.
SARAH: So this is what you do, you and John. You solve puzzles for a living.
SHERLOCK (tetchily, not looking round): Consulting detective.
SARAH: Oh.
(In the kitchen, John is searching through cupboards. He twists the lid off a jar of pickled onions, sniffs the contents and recoils at the smell.)
JOHN: Oh!
(He puts the lid back on and continues his search.
Sarah has walked over to Sherlock and is looking over his shoulder. She points to the paper he’s looking at.)
SARAH: What are these squiggles?
(Sherlock raises his head, his face set as if he’s trying very hard not to kill her.)
SHERLOCK (still not looking round at her): They’re numbers. An ancient Chinese dialect.
SARAH: Oh, right! Yeah, well, of course I should have known that(!)
(In the kitchen John has found a small bag of Wotsits [a brand of cheese puffs] and is emptying them into a bowl. Mrs Hudson comes to the door and speaks quietly.)
MRS HUDSON: Ooh-ooh!
(John looks up and his face fills with grateful delight as she comes in carrying a tray covered with a tea towel.)
MRS HUDSON (whispering): I’ve done punch, and a bowl of nibbles.
(She puts the tray on the table and takes off the tea towel to reveal a jug of punch with slices of fruit floating on top, two glasses, a bowl of crisps and another bowl presumably containing some dip.)
JOHN (softly): Mrs Hudson, you’re a saint!
MRS HUDSON (whispering): If it was Monday, I’d have been to the supermarket!
JOHN (whispering): No; thank you! Thank you!
(Back in the living room, Sherlock is just about to commit murder as Sarah picks up the photograph of the brick wall which Dimmock had brought back sealed in an evidence bag. He glares at her in utter fury and then turns his head away, his teeth bared.)
SARAH (oblivious to his rage): So these numbers – it’s a cipher.
SHERLOCK (tightly): Exactly.
SARAH: And each pair of numbers is a word.
(Sherlock’s head slowly lifts.)
SHERLOCK: How did you know that?
(For the first time he turns and meets her eyes.)
SARAH: Well, two words have already been translated, here.
(She puts the picture down on the desk and points. Sherlock takes the photo from her and stares at it.)
SHERLOCK: John.
JOHN: Mmm?
(He looks round from the kitchen table.)
SHERLOCK (standing up): John, look at this.
(He takes the photo out of the evidence bag as John comes out of the kitchen.)
SHERLOCK: Soo Lin at the museum – she started to translate the code for us. We didn’t see it!
(Written in fine pen, a word has been written across each of the first two sets of symbols on the photograph. Sherlock reads them out.)
SHERLOCK: “NINE,” “MILL.”
JOHN (squinting at the photo): Does that mean ‘millions’?
SHERLOCK (thoughtfully): Nine million quid. For what?
(He turns and goes over to where he had dumped his coat and scarf.)
SHERLOCK: We need to know the end of this sentence.
JOHN: Where are you going?
SHERLOCK (putting on his coat): To the museum; to the restoration room.
(He grimaces in exasperation at himself.)
SHERLOCK: Oh, we must have been staring right at it!
JOHN: At-at what?
SHERLOCK: The book, John. The book – the key to cracking the cipher!
(He brandishes the photo at John.)
SHERLOCK: Soo Lin used it to do this! Whilst we were running around the gallery, she started to translate the code. It must be on her desk.
(And he’s gone, hurrying out the door.)

Out on Baker Street, a man and woman are walking along the road. Obviously tourists, they are consulting the London A-Z and looking around. Sherlock bursts out of the door of 221B, running towards the kerb to hail a passing black cab.
SHERLOCK: Taxi!
(As he sweeps past the tourists, he brushes past hard enough to break the man’s hold on the book, which falls to the ground. The man yells at him indignantly in German.)
TOURIST: Hey, du! Siehst du nicht wo du hingehst? [Hey, you! Why don’t you look where you’re going?]
(Sherlock turns back and picks up the book, handing it back to the man.)
SHERLOCK: Entschuldigen Sie, bitte. [Forgive me, please.]
TOURIST (snarkily, snatching the book back): Ja, danke(!) [Yeah, thanks(!)]
(He turns away, putting his arm around his wife and still bitching.)
TOURIST: Und dann sagen die, dass die Engländer höflich sind! [And they say the English are polite!]
{Oy, you grumpy git, Sherlock was incredibly polite when he apologised to you. You’re lucky he doesn’t smack you in the face and then mug you in a moment. And if he doesn’t, I will.}
(Sherlock turns and raises his arm to the cab again but it has already driven past. He grunts in exasperation and walks down the road, looking over his shoulder to check traffic coming from behind him. After a few yards, he stop and turns back again, grunting angrily a second time when no cabs magically materialise for him. Looking up and down the road, he sees an Asian couple, possibly father and daughter, standing at the corner over the road and consulting an A-Z as they too try to work out their route. Sherlock’s eyes narrow, and he flashes back in his mind to walking across Lukis’ living room and looking at a pile of books and papers on a table. The London A-Z was the top book on the pile. He flashes back further into the past and remembers seeing a pile of books in Van Coon’s living room. The third book down on the pile was the London A-Z. Then he remembers turning around from the crates in his own living room and staring at his bookcase.)
SHERLOCK (in flashback): A book that everybody would own.
(His memories move on to him smiling at Soo Lin after he handed her the teapot in the restoration room. On the table was a London A-Z.
In the present, Sherlock’s mouth opens in startled realisation and he breaks into a run, chasing back towards the German couple.)
SHERLOCK (shouting): Please, wait! Bitte! [Please!]
(The tourists turn back and frown in confusion as he hurries toward them.)
MALE TOURIST: Was wollt er? Was will er? [{Anarion says that the first sentence makes no sense at all, but the second sentence translates to:} What does he want?]
(Sherlock runs up to them and snatches the A-Z from the man’s hands and turns away, looking down at the book.)
TOURIST: Hey, du! Was macht du? [Hey, you! What are you doing?]
SHERLOCK (turning back to him momentarily): Minute! [{This loosely translates as} Wait a minute!]
TOURIST (angrily): Gib mir doch mein Buch zurück! [Give me back my book!]
(Ignoring him, Sherlock turns his back on the couple again and opens the book. Waving his hand in exasperation at the crazy Englander, the man puts his arm around his wife and they walk away.)