Sherlock Holmes such that many have believed him to be not a fictional character but a real individual; numerous literary and fan societies have been founded that pretend to operate on this principle. Widely considered a British cultural icon, the character and stories have had a profound and lasting effect on mystery writing and popular culture as a whole, with the original tales as well as thousands written by authors other than Conan Doyle being adapted into stage and radio plays, television, films, video games, and other media for over one hundred years. Edgar Allan Poe's C. Auguste Dupin is generally acknowledged
Fictional detectives Dupin. Later, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes became the most famous example and remains so to this day. The detectives are often accompanied by a Dr. Watson-like assistant or narrator. However, in several of her novels where he appears, Agatha Christie gives reference to Hercule Poirot being the greatest detective in all the world. Fictional detectives generally fit one of four archetypes: Notable fictional detectives and their creators include: Fictional detectives Fictional detectives are characters in detective fiction. These characters have long been a staple of detective mystery crime fiction, particularly in detective novels and short stories. Much of