Journey to the Centre of Toronto

"Journey to the Centre of Toronto"
Season	7
Episode	11
Airdate	January 13, 2014
Writer	Simon McNabb
Director	Harvey Crossland
Guests	Lauren Lee Smith
Previous	Murdoch in Ragtime
Next	Unfinished Business

"Journey to the Centre of Toronto" is the eleventh episode of the seventh season of the Murdoch Mysteries and the eighty-ninth episode of the series. It first aired January 3, 2014.

Summary

Detective Murdoch investigates a series of robberies where the thieves have dug through the the ground and into various shops or banks. The thieves only steal diamonds however. Murdoch suspects the thief is using some type of boring device and that he and Julia may have actually felt it burrowing under the ground the night of the first robbery. Constable Crabtree develops his own theories after interviewing Elva Gordon, a deep cave explorer who believes the Earth is hollow and that there might be an entire world of people living underground. Crabtree now believes "mole people" may be at work. That theory doesn't impress Murdoch who decides to use modern technology to track the boring machine.

Character Revelations

• George once dug out his Aunt Magnolia's cellar. It took me three Saturdays to get the length of the house. So a city block would take a few weeks
• George becomes an avid believer of the Hollow Earth theory.

Continuity

• George complains of how he always has to dig for Murdoch, but Murdoch tells him that he is much better at digging than he is.

Historical References

• The concept of a "Hollow Earth" has been prevalent throughout various mythologies and folklore in the ancient world. During the 19th century John Cleves Symmes Jr., a former soldier, gained notoriety for his theory that earth is actually a hollow shell. John Quincy Adams was supportive of a quest to go and find the Hollow Earth, but his successor, Andrew Jackson quickly put an end to any and all possibility of such an expedition.
• The process of electroplating is partially addressed as the procedure where metals are broken down to molecules, then bonded with another surface, covering the entire area.
• Seismometer was coined by David Milne-Home in 1841, to describe an instrument that measure motion of the ground, including those of seismic waves generated by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and other seismic sources, designed by Scottish physicist James David Forbes.
• George introduces Emily to the new Hot Sausage aka Hot Dog and orders the 'Coney Island' for them in the end scene.

Trivia

• Showrunner Peter Mitchell explains how the storyline came about: “One of us [ in the Writers' Room ] read about the American president at the time who believed in mole people. He in fact wanted to fund an expedition to go the centre of the Earth to find mole people! ”
• There are no murders in this episode, unlike the rest of Season 7.
• The Graphizer voted #4 of 5 Favourite Murdoch Inventions^[1] by The Arts Guide 8/20/15 Adnan M.

Cast

Main Cast

Yannick Bisson as William Murdoch
Hélène Joy as Julia Ogden
Thomas Craig as Thomas Brackenreid
Jonny Harris as George Crabtree
Georgina Reilly as Emily Grace

Recurring Cast

Kristian Bruun as Constable Slugger Jackson

Guest Cast

Lauren Lee Smith as Elva Gordon
Robert Mauriell as Herbert Humphreys
Jason Weinberg as Mr. Blevitch #1
Glen Gaston as Mr. Blevitch #2
Christopher Morris as Dr. Martin Roome

Gallery