He is on diet 

He always carries an umbrella, no matter it's a sunny day (misterious umbrella, isn't it?)

He doesn't like legwork.

He is even more brilliant in making deductions than his little brother.
He likes to drink something that looks like brandy.
He repeatedly threatens Sherlock with a knighthood.
He calls his mother "Mummy".

Davina wrote:

He doesn't frequent cafes.

But IF he does, prior to that he smokes. 

Hmm.
These are just things noticed so far more than analyses; not even observations really. To add to the things noticed list I would say he lives in a big house with life sized chess pieces in the living room.

Analysis & observations: Mycroft has a sense of 'family' because he does 'look out' for Sherlock, regardless of their sibling rivalry banter. He is not afraid to ask for his brother's help & does so often, usually because it involves legwork which is is loathe to do.
He is also not one to hold back when angry, just look at the cutting remarks made at the end of Scandal.
However he oversteps the boundaries of 'brotherhood' by thinking that Sherlock's friends are naturally his friends. eg "shut up Mrs Hudson".
He is wary of John at the start & why wouldn't he be? Here is some guy who has moved in with his 'antisocial' brother. You'd certainly raise an eyebrow or two wouldn't you? His brother is a genius and some army dude has 'latched on'????

He certainly does have a very high intellect but the difference between himself and Sherlock is that he is more 'in touch' with the outside world. This is paramount in his position with the Government. eg Kept up with gossip & knew who Irene Adler was.

I don't think Mycroft is THAT much different in BBC than in the canon, just a more rounded character. Comparing his aloofness, his laziness from then to now I don't believe he has changed much at all.
And if you look at the Jeremy Brett interpretation, in one show he asks Sherlock ' Is that Father's magnifying glass" "why did he give it to you?". The inference there is of sibling rivalry so it has been a common theme throughout really.

However this rivalry was probably the 'save' for Mycroft in Reichenbach. Obviously Moriarty did not think the bond between them was strong enough to set Mycroft up for assassination. So in reality, the public rivalry worked to their advantage. By what degree will be interesting to discover.

I believe the contrast in 'involvement' with each other between BBC and canon is the fact that in this day & age, everyone is in constant contact with each other through electronic devices. It may not have been than 'canon Mycroft' was not that involved or interested in his brother but more to do with the constraints of communication at that time. These days, we can be in contact with anyone or even just 'follow' anyone via the internets, phone etc.

So, once again I say to you guys " Don't just SEE, OBSERVE".

Last edited by kazza474 (April 28, 2012 8:51 am)

Glad you agree on the 'not being too different' thing.
DO you see what I mean by 'things noticed vs observations vs deductions'?

Analysis and deductions from an observation. He is a member of The Diogenes Club. There are many other grntleman's club in London that he could have chosen to be a member of.

Firstly, we can deduce that he has the standing required to be allowed to be a member of this exclusive club.

Secondly, he has chosen to belong to a club which has a rule of no talking, except in The Strangers' Room. This does, I think, tell us something of his character. That he is, like his brother, something of a loner socially.

Thirdly, It is also a club which is frequented by members of parliament and others of influence.; a place where people can get peace and quiet but where behind the scenes machinatioms could take place.

Fourthly, it is to this club that he has John Watson taken to explain about the assassins and The Richard Brook newspaper story; he knows that what goes on behind these doors, stays there.

Fifthly, It is here also, that after Sherlock's 'death' he is shown; he knows that here no questions can be asked of him. Interestingly the circumstances of his brothers demise has not affected his membership of the club.

To summarise:
Membership of the club underlines his membership of the establishment.
He likes to be less than sociable, at least at times.
He is a person involved in complex machinations who needs somewhere where nothing will be divulged.
He uses the club as his safe haven, it is a secure location for him emotionally.

Mycroft is a co-founder of a club where, socially, people are forbidden to converse. Interesting. Contact with people through work does not necessarily require him to be sociable outside of  work. Yes, agreed, a manipulative force both within government and, as Sherlock says, possibly outside of government. He is practically the British Government.