Sherlock Holmes Day

Sherlock Holmes Day is a great opportunity to commemorate Sherlock Holmes and the author who created him, Arthur Conan Doyle.

World famous detective. The most portrayed character in cinema history. Mystery solver icon. Who are we talking about? Why, it's Sherlock Holmes, of course! Any self-respecting amateur detective would have guessed that.

With millions of mystery fans, Sherlock Holmes, the ultimate detective archetype,  has been a hero since its creation. Therefore, everyone can definitely agree that this guy deserves his own day.

History of Sherlock Holmes Day

This day celebrates Sherlock Holmes and the author who created him, Arthur Conan Doyle, was born in 1859 in Edinburgh, Scotland. As a child, Doyle was fascinated by the stories his mother told him, which were the spark that led him to become a writer. He was sent to a Jesuit preparatory school in England at the age of nine. There he met Professor Dr. Joseph Bell, who became his mentor, and later became the inspiration and role model for Sherlock Holmes.

While in medical school, Doyle wrote the short stories "The Mystery of the Sasassa Valley" and "The American Story", which later appeared in the journal London Society. He also worked as a surgeon on a whaling ship in the Arctic Circle when he was at school, which inspired him to write Captain of the Pole Star. After becoming a doctor, he moved around a bit, focusing on his practice, but also continued to write. He also left his Catholic faith to become a Spiritualist. In the end, he gave up his job as a doctor and focused solely on his writing and his faith.

Sherlock Holmes and his assistant, Watson, were introduced in the novel A Study in Scarlet, which first appeared during Beeton's annual Christmas in 1887. It was with this novel that the writing career of Mr. Doyle is finally starting to flourish. Sherlock Holmes, a "consulting detective" who pursues crime in London, across England and across Europe, has become the most notable detective figure of all time. In total, Doyle wrote 60 stories featuring Sherlock Holmes. Some of Doyle's most notable books include Sherlock Holmes as the Sign of the Quartet, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, and The Hound of the Baskervilles.

In 1893, Doyle tried to kill Holmes in his short story "The Final Problem", because he wanted to focus more on his writing on Spiritualism. His readers weren't happy — 20,000 readers even canceled their subscriptions to Strand Magazine, the magazine in which Sherlock Holmes stories often appeared. In the end, Doyle was convinced to bring Holmes back. He reintroduced him in 1901 in his novel named “The Hound of Baskervilles”. After that, he brought him back in "The Adventures of the Empty House" in 1903. One of the reasons he We decided to bring him back so he could use the profits from the stories to help fund his mission. The last twelve Sherlock Holmes stories appeared in a 1928 collection titled The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes.

Besides his works on Sherlock Holmes, Doyle wrote other books such as Beyond the City, The Stark Munro Letters, and A Duet with an Occasional Chorus, as well as a series of works on Spiritualism. He was diagnosed with Angina Pectoris late in life. On July 7th, 1930, Arthur Conan Doyle died in his garden with one arm to his chest and the other to a flower. The stories of Sherlock Holmes continue to be read, and Sherlock also continues to live on stage and in film adaptations of his stories.

How to celebrate Sherlock Holmes Day

• Read some Sherlock Holmes stories

For those of you who love to read and have somehow never read these amazing stories (gasp!) it's time to get started. There are 56 short stories and four novels, so it may take some time.

The weather in May in most parts of the world is quite nice, so an afternoon lounging in the shade of a tree and getting lost in the world created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is a great idea.

• Watch Sherlock Holmes Movies or TV Series

For those of you who've read Sherlock Holmes stories and books or feel like closing your eyes, what about one of the many shows or movies about Detective Holmes?

No matter who their favorite Hollywood celebrities are, most people are likely to find someone they love breathing new life into the character of Sherlock Holmes. From Sir Ian McKellen to Robert Downey Jr., from Christopher Lee to Benedict Cumberbatch and more, there are more than different versions of Sherlock Holmes to choose for you.

• Partying for Sherlock Holmes Day

Invite a group of friends to a fun mystery party where guests are assigned roles ahead of time and come join and help solve the mystery. Some parties have a specific theme about Sherlock Holmes characters. In addition, solving a murder is an ideal activity that keeps everyone be interested in during the party.

Decorate the house to resemble 221b Baker Street, where Sherlock Holmes lived and is ready to have fun! For those who need help with props and insights, many options for murder mystery party packages can be found online.

• Take a trip to London

Those who haven't visited 221b Baker Street in London come for a real meal! The official museum is very interesting to see relics of different types. Plus, the city of London is a playground to find filming locations for various movies and shows, especially those from the BBC's Sherlock (2010-2017) series.

• Love to play detective

For those who feel like being a little more active, Sherlock Holmes Day could be the perfect time to play a child detective. Do you have a feeling there might be something in the workplace that you're desperate to learn about but no manager seems to want to say too much about?

Did someone steal your bread from the fridge? Or maybe you received some intriguing messages from an unknown number and want to know who is sending them? Whatever little mystery is keeping you up at night, let today be the day you decide to find out what's up!

• Read Sherlock Holmes with the kids

And if you have kids, Sherlock Holmes Day is the perfect day to get them interested in a literary classic that never gets old and can keep them engrossed in reading the whole thing in the process. No matter how you celebrate Sherlock Holmes Day, it's still a mystery to us – and it's up to you to solve!