Conan Doyle on Holiday

Arthur Conan Doyle on Holiday

Among Conan Doyle’s many facets were a love of adventure and sport.  Due to his success as a writer, he had the opportunity to travel widely and often took his family. From Canada and America, to Australia, Ceylon and Egypt, Conan Doyle’s family were true globetrotters well before the age of the jetsetter. The Collection contains many albums of holiday snaps taken by the family of their tours through many exotic locales.

Conan Doyle was also a keen sportsman, and often took part in all kinds of leisure activities while at home and traveling. He and his sons tried their hands at baseball in New York, enjoyed deck-cricket  sailing the seas and rode camels in Egypt.

Never far behind Conan Doyle lurks the master detective, Sherlock Holmes. As the figure of Holmes became more and more iconic and entrenched in western culture, his deerstalker, pipe and profile made their way into all kinds of unrelated industries, including tourism.

This exhibition shows a glimpse of the places Conan Doyle and his family visited.

Exhibition stand at the Central Library

Conan Doyle and his cricket team on tour in Holland

Conan Doyle playing tennis in Australia

Conan Doyle enjoyed a wide variety of outdoor pursuits and activities, and became a member of his local hunt at Chiddingfold in Surrey, pictured here on his horse Brigadier

Conan Doyle swimming in Pietermaritzburg

Conan Doyle watching a snake charmer at a snake park in Port Elizabeth, South Africa

Conan Doyle playing cricket at sea on an unusual pitch - on board RMS Dunottar Castle

Dennis Conan Doyle, Arthur's son,  riding a camel in Egypt

Conan Doyle with his children, Denis, Adrian and Billie standing outside Edgar Allan Poe's house at Fordham, New York in America

To see more images and find out more about the collection, email: sherlock.holmes@portsmouthcc.gov.uk