Thank you! It was you who introduced me to the love of Mycroft Holmes! Now if I ever see anything that casts him in an even remotely unfavourable light I get all disgusted and "NO. SHUT UP. SLANDER!" Much as I will now never be able to see Watson as having any eye-colour other than blue.

I am so glad ACD gave Holmes a brilliant big brother, it is such a sweet dimension to the character - and bloody useful too. And the minute you posit "Holmes is gay" Mycroft just becomes even more awesome, because there's no way the Mycroft Doyle wrote wouldn't know, and then his obvious quiet affection for and acceptance of his brother looks all the more valuable and profound.