Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is known for Sherlock Holmes.

But to me, he's known for so much more.

He was a major Spiritualist. After the death of his wife, his son, his brother, his two brothers-in-law and his two nephews, he fell into a deep depression. The fact that life existed beyond death gave him hope.

He was friends with Houdini, believing him to have great magical powers, but Houdini refuted him, leading to a public end to their friendship.

The Cottingly Fairy hoax totally took him. He believed that the fairies were real and a gift for the other world, so that people would see that imaginary things could become real. That this world was not everything it seemed.

His last words were to his wife: "You are wonderful."

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