The library of Sherlock Holmes is almost as mysterious as the cases the super sleuth used to crack. Common knowledge claims 62 stories in total. However, only four of these arrived in novels. The rest appeared in five collections of short stories.
So, that’s 62 stories in nine books, beginning with 1887’s A Study in Scarlet and ending with The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes in 1927, three years before the character’s creator, Arthur Conan Doyle, passed on in 1930.
Hollywood Movies
Of course, as we know today, Sherlock’s career didn’t truly end with the death of Doyle. The most recent (official) book in the Holmes canon is a 2025 effort from Gareth Rubin entitled Holmes and Moriarty. Previously, in 2019, the popular crime writer Anthony Horowitz penned a new Holmes novel, Moriarty.
Source: Pexels.
That’s not to mention the detective’s occasional dalliance with the screen. There are more than 50 movies and TV series based on Sherlock Holmes. The BBC made a well-received 15-episode serial between 2010 and 2017, starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. The pairing of Jude Law and Robert Downey Jr. stars in two Hollywood movies dedicated to Holmes, with a third due out in 2026.
Gaming has had a hand in shaping Sherlock Holmes’ legacy, too. Sherlock and Moriarty Wowpot! is one of the jackpot slots playable at online casinos. It includes the likeness of the two title characters, as well as Irene Adler and one of Doyle’s policemen. Video game developer Frogwares makes the lion’s share of Holmes games on other platforms. Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened appeared in 2023 as a remake of a 2007 title of the same name.
221b Baker Street
That’s a lot of material to consume. It also sounds like a lot of ground to cover if we want to explore Holmes’ London in the present day. Yet, Doyle kept Sherlock’s geography fairly tight, focusing on areas like Mayfair, Marylebone, and the riverside by Charing Cross. Let’s start in the obvious place – 221b Baker Street, Sherlock’s erstwhile home.
Today, 221b Baker Street is occupied by a museum dedicated to Sherlock Holmes (an author for the Londonist website describes it as “a bit of a fudge”, as it occupies the space between 237 and 241 Baker Street).
One of Doyle’s real-life houses sits in South Norwood, although he was known for having up to three, one of which was demolished to house buildings from the University of London. It’s a fun blue plaque hunt for literature hounds.
Another good place to learn about Doyle’s sleuth is at the Sherlock Holmes pub, Charing Cross. This popular watering hole houses a relic from the 1951 Festival of Britain – a diorama of Holmes’ house, featuring chemistry equipment, various tinctures and bottles, and what looks like a papier mache vision of the man himself.
Walking Tour
Sherlock Holmes mostly haunted real-life locations (there’s another blue plaque at Bart’s Hospital Museum in West Smithfield), so any quest for the detective fits neatly into a regular sightseeing tour of London. Other things to do include visiting Sherlock at Madame Tussauds and his statue at Baker Street Station.
If you absolutely don’t feel like making your own itinerary, take the walking tour instead. It begins every Wednesday and Saturday at 10:30 from the Savini at Criterion, Piccadilly Circus. There’s plenty to hunt for. No magnifying glass required.
