The Death and Life
The Death and Life by Sherlock Holmes is a show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2026, performing at Arthur Conan Doyle Centre. It has 14 performances listed, running from Fri 14 Aug, 19:30 to Sat 29 Aug, 19:30. The run has finished — every listed performance has taken place.
About this show
A fantasy based upon fiction, which finds Arthur Conan Doyle tiring of "his" intolerably arrogant Sherlock Holmes and inventing the arch villain, Moriarty, to kill him. But Doyle's dangerous strategy, combined with his passion for raising spirits of the dead, has rather more surreal and dramatic consequences than bargained for. A light-hearted and intriguing investigation of the consequences when fictional characters take on lives and ambitions of their own, against the wishes of the author. In this wryly humorous one-man tale of murder and mystery, the world's greatest detective refuses to leave the stage!
Details
- Performer: Sherlock Holmes
- Venue: Arthur Conan Doyle Centre
- Space: The Helen Duncan Room
- Genre: THEATRE, Classical, Drama
- Country: UNITED KINGDOM - ENGLAND
- Running time: 60 minutes
- Room size: about 70 seats (The Helen Duncan Room) — the Fringe box office sells a share of the room, not all of it
- Performances listed: 14, of which 0 still to come and on sale
Accessibility
- Venue notes: Accessible entry: Space is located on the first floor. There are 3 steps in the main foyer then 20+ up a wide l shaped staircase to get to into the space. Stairs: 20+ Number of stairs is provided as guidance and is not in addition to any wheelchair access type (lift/ramp etc) stated above.
What the reviewers said
We have captured 2 published reviews and 9 audience reviews for this show from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe’s own listing. The excerpts below are the reviewers’ words, not ours — follow each link for the full review.
Writer David Stuart Davies, director Gareth Armstrong and actor Nigel Miles-Thomas having previously explored the character, his cases and his complexity superbly in The Last Act, the mirror now shifts to explore the…
A full house responded with rapturous applause at the end, and deservedly so. An entertaining, imaginative production and a thoroughly enjoyable way to spend an hour. I’d certainly recommend catching it.
— one4review (4 out of 5 stars)
Performance dates and ticket availability
- Fri 14 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Sat 15 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Sun 16 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Tue 18 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Wed 19 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Thu 20 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Fri 21 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Sat 22 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Sun 23 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Tue 25 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Wed 26 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Thu 27 Aug, 19:30 — Cancelled — £15.00
- Fri 28 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00
- Sat 29 Aug, 19:30 — Already performed — £15.00