The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes characters

Sherlock Holmes

Also known as Holmes, Mr. Holmes

The world's foremost consulting detective, whose extraordinary powers of observation and deduction unravel every mystery in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.

As drawn: A tall, very lean man with a pale, sharp, hawk-like face, high cheekbones, a thin aquiline nose and keen, piercing pale-grey eyes beneath dark brows, crowned by tousled near-black hair; fair skin. Dressed in a dark navy high-collared coat over a brown patterned waistcoat and white shirt, with long, restless, nervous hands; often seen with pipe, deerstalker or dressing-gown.

Bonds:JohnClose friendsHelenClient and detectiveJabezPartnerVioletClient

John Watson

Also known as Watson, Dr. Watson

Holmes's loyal friend, flat-mate and biographer, a retired army doctor whose steady common sense and warm narration frame every one of the Adventures.

As drawn: A sturdy, good-natured man of early middle age, a former army surgeon of medium build, with a square honest face, short wavy chestnut-brown hair, warm brown eyes and a modest brown moustache; fair, faintly ruddy skin. Dressed as a respectable physician in a green-brown tweed jacket over a chestnut waistcoat with a watch-chain, a white shirt and a dark tie.

Bonds:SherlockClose friendsLestradeColleaguesVioletInvestigation partnersGodfreyCase collaborators

Irene Adler

Also known as the woman, Miss Adler, Irene Norton

The clever and daring American adventuress and retired opera singer who outwits Holmes in A Scandal in Bohemia; ever afterward 'the woman' in his memory.

As drawn: A strikingly beautiful young woman, an operatic contralto, with abundant dark near-black hair swept up in a loose Victorian chignon, dark expressive eyes, arched brows and a knowing half-smile; light olive complexion. Wears an elegant high-necked plum-purple blouse with a soft pussy-bow, gold filigree drop earrings and a dark skirt.

Bonds:JohnAdversaries

Mrs. Hudson

Also known as the landlady

The patient, motherly landlady of 221B Baker Street who keeps house for Holmes and Watson and shows in their many visitors throughout the Adventures.

As drawn: A kindly elderly landlady with silver-grey hair pinned in a neat bun, soft wrinkled cheeks, warm brown eyes behind small gold oval spectacles and a gentle smile; fair skin. Wears a high-necked dark-green Victorian dress with a white lace collar, a floral brooch and a white pinafore apron.

Inspector Lestrade

Also known as Lestrade, the inspector

A dogged, energetic professional detective of Scotland Yard who crosses paths with Holmes among the official police of the Adventures, more persistent than gifted.

As drawn: A wiry, sallow-faced Scotland Yard inspector of middle age, lean and rat-featured, with dark deep-set eyes, prominent dark brows and a neat dark moustache; fair but sallow complexion. Wears a brown bowler hat and a heavy black double-breasted overcoat with two rows of brass buttons over a dark tie and white collar.

Bonds:JohnColleagues

King of Bohemia

Also known as the King, Wilhelm von Ormstein, Count Von Kramm

Wilhelm von Ormstein, hereditary King of Bohemia, who calls on Holmes in disguise to recover a compromising photograph held by Irene Adler in A Scandal in Bohemia.

As drawn: An imposing, powerfully built man well over six feet, broad-chested and Herculean, with thick dark curling hair and a heavy black moustache; light-tan skin. Conceals the upper half of his face behind a black vizard mask. Dressed with royal extravagance: a deep-blue fur-trimmed (astrakhan) cloak embroidered in gold with a heraldic lion and crown, an ornate black-and-gold frogged tunic, a jewelled clasp and black gloves.

Godfrey Norton

Also known as Mr. Norton, Norton

A handsome young lawyer of the Inner Temple who courts and secretly marries the opera singer Irene Adler, upsetting Holmes's plans in A Scandal in Bohemia.

As drawn: A dashing young barrister in his prime with wavy near-black hair, dark eyes, thick brows and a full dark moustache; fair, faintly ruddy skin. Dressed at the height of 1880s fashion: a tall black silk top hat, a navy tailcoat over a patterned tobacco-brown waistcoat with a gold watch-chain, a crisp white wing-collar shirt and a black silk bow tie.

Bonds:JohnCase collaborators

Dr. Grimesby Roylott

Also known as Dr. Roylott, Grimesby Roylott, Roylott

The violent, impoverished last heir of Stoke Moran, a former doctor in India with a murderous temper, who is the sinister villain of The Adventure of the Speckled Band.

As drawn: A towering, thick-set older man, so tall he must stoop in a doorway, with immense breadth of shoulder. A large face seared with a thousand wrinkles, burned deep yellow-brown by years of Indian sun and marked by every evil passion, with deep-set bile-shot eyes and a high, thin, fleshless nose like a bird of prey; balding with wisps of grizzled grey hair. Dressed as a dishevelled country squire: a black top hat, long black frock-coat and high gaiters, a hunting-crop in a huge sunburned hand.

Bonds:HelenStepfather

Helen Stoner

Also known as Miss Stoner, Helen

The terrified young stepdaughter of Dr. Grimesby Roylott who begs Holmes to investigate her twin sister's mysterious death before her own wedding, in The Adventure of the Speckled Band.

As drawn: A frightened gentlewoman of about thirty who looks older, her face drawn and grey with dread and her restless eyes like those of a hunted animal. Brown hair prematurely shot with streaks of grey; fair, pale skin. Dressed all in black and heavily veiled in mourning-like travelling dress, shivering with cold and fear.

Bonds:SherlockClient and detectiveGrimesbyStepfather

Jabez Wilson

Also known as Mr. Wilson, Wilson

The gullible red-headed London pawnbroker lured into a bogus salaried job copying the encyclopaedia, which leaves his shop free for a bank robbery, in The Red-Headed League.

As drawn: A stout, elderly, pompous and slow-moving pawnbroker, obese and portly, whose most remarkable feature is a blazing shock of fiery red hair; ruddy fair skin with a fish tattooed above the right wrist. Dressed in shabby respectability: a faded brown overcoat with a wrinkled velvet collar, a drab waistcoat crossed by a heavy brassy Albert watch-chain hung with a square pierced Chinese coin, and a frayed grey top hat.

Bonds:SherlockPartner

John Clay

Also known as Vincent Spaulding, Clay

A brilliant, cold-blooded criminal of royal descent, murderer, thief and forger, who poses as the pawnbroker's assistant 'Vincent Spaulding' to tunnel from a cellar into a bank vault in The Red-Headed League.

As drawn: A small, wiry, quick-moving young man in his thirties with a smooth beardless face, sharp shrewd features, sleek dark hair and pale aristocratic skin. A white splash of acid scar marks his forehead and his ears are pierced for earrings. Neatly but plainly dressed as a shop assistant, alert and cat-like in his agility.

Violet Hunter

Also known as Miss Hunter, Violet

The plucky, level-headed governess whose uneasy new post and its strange demands draw Holmes into The Adventure of the Copper Beeches.

As drawn: A bright, self-possessed young governess of about thirty, plainly but neatly dressed, with a lively quick face freckled like a plover's egg and a brisk, capable manner. Rich chestnut-auburn hair worn coiled up (later cropped short at her employer's demand); fair, freckled skin. Sensible, modest governess dress in muted tones.

Bonds:SherlockClientJohnInvestigation partners

Mary Sutherland

Also known as Miss Sutherland, Mary

The trusting, short-sighted typist jilted at the altar by the mysterious 'Hosmer Angel,' whose disappearance Holmes quietly explains in A Case of Identity.

As drawn: A large, plump, short-sighted young typist with a broad, good-humoured, somewhat vacuous face; fair skin and mousey hair. Over-dressed in slightly gaudy fashion: a broad-brimmed hat tilted coquettishly and trimmed with a big curling red feather, a heavy fur boa about the neck, and gloves she fidgets with nervously.

Neville St. Clair

Also known as Hugh Boone, St. Clair

A respectable suburban gentleman secretly leading a far more lucrative life as the disfigured professional beggar Hugh Boone, in The Man with the Twisted Lip.

As drawn: A gentleman of about thirty-seven leading a double life. In his true form: respectable, well-dressed and clean-featured, of medium build. In his beggar disguise as Hugh Boone: an arresting, hideous face with a shock of vivid orange-red hair, pale skin, and a horrible scar that has twisted and turned up the outer edge of the upper lip into a permanent sneer, with a bulldog jaw and penetrating dark eyes; wrapped in ragged clothing with a greasy leather cap.