Hi folks! I’m Gareth Smith, and I play Dr Watson in Sherlock Holmes and the Sound of the Baskervilles. As those of you who saw our sell-out 2010 run will be aware, one of the most important artistic features of the show is Watson’s moustache.

Moustaches are awesome, and it takes a great deal of energy and dedication to maintain one properly. Unfortunately my face just isn’t awesome enough to support a moustache full-time, so I have to make a moustache-transition a month or so before we perform. This involves, among other things, properly feeding and cultivating my upper lip and performing hours of gruelling face-exercises so as to be able to effortlessly support the awesome weight of Watson’s stylish patent handlebar.

In this post, I would like to describe one important stage in laying the groundwork for an awesome moustache: Pimping Watson’s Ride.

When I don’t have a moustache, I ride a bicycle that looks something like this:

Now, as any avid follower of Le Gentleman or the fantastic Nicole Cooke will know, racing bicycles like this are things of extraordinary beauty. Unfortunately, with a moustache, this kind of bicycle can leave one looking a bit silly:

In order to make my bicycle better suited to a more mustachioed riding style, I had to make a few changes.

Bar-end gear shifters:

BMX brake levers:

A little bell:

Inverted handlebars:

And of course, some sensible indicator lights:

There. Far less silly:

And it handles beautifully:

Well, that’s about it from me for this time. But before I go – remember – riding near motor-traffic can be dangerous. Especially at night. So Be Safe. Be Seen!