MWC018 The Real Sherlock Holmes

Gap-fill exercise

Fill in all the gaps, then press "Check" to check your answers. Use the "Hint" button to get a free letter if an answer is giving you trouble. You can also click on the "[?]" button to get a clue. Note that you will lose points if you ask for hints or clues!
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Read the text about the real Sherlock Holmes. Fill in the missing words from the word box. There are more words than you will need .


The Real Sherlock Holmes


Sherlock Holmes is probably the most famous detective in . Of course, he wasn't a real person. His is based on a real man whose career had a great influence on Arthur Conan Doyle, the author of the detective stories.


The man's name was Joseph Bell and he was a surgeon teaching medicine at Edinburgh University. Conan Doyle first met Bell when he went to one of Bell's in 1877. Noticing Conan Doyle's and intelligence , the great doctor decided to make him his . This gave Conan Doyle the opportunity to observe Bell and to see how he treated his .


Bell believed that the most important thing was to find out as much as he could about his patients. He did this by how they moved and acted, and by looking closely at their bodies, hands and clothing. For example, by looking at someone's hands he could often work out what they were in. By listening to their it was possible to find out where they came from.


This technique of information from very detailed was the inspiration for the character of Sherlock Holmes. Holmes notices things the person is usually unaware of. This is often the to solving crimes. Living in an age before DNA and scientific , Holmes must use his own intelligence and powers of observation.