It's elementary as Sherlock goes Welsh

One hundred copies of a Welsh version of The Speckled Band were published earlier this month and there are now only five copies remaining.

The book was brought about through the Deerstalkers of Welshpool Sherlock Holmes society with Welsh being the 99th language a book about the master detective has been translated into.

Roy Upton-Holder, founder of the society, said he was pleased with how the translation of The Speckled Band – or Y Cylch Brith in Welsh – has gone down.

"It was something I was thinking about for years but it was finding a good translator. You must have somebody with real experience," he said.

"We have only got five copies left as we printed 100 for the first edition to make them more valuable."

Translator Eurwyn Pierce Jones, from Montgomery, worked for about five months on the text, producing several drafts before it went to print.

Mr Upton-Holder said Arthur Conan-Doyle's detective still has a considerable grip on the public with about 400 Sherlock Holmes societies in operation around the world.

"There is no other fictional detective that has got the following that Holmes has got," he said.

The 83 year old's own love of Holmes has resulted in his house being renamed as Baskerville, while his cat is called Mycroft, the name of Sherlock's brother.

He said his interest in Holmes dated back to a spell in hospital when he was 20 when he was treated for a back problem.

After being sent home to recover, his father gave him two Sherlock Holmes collections to read.

"I started to read them and couldn't put them down," he said.

He said his wife Joan is tolerant of his hobby.

"She supports me in this. I could go out drinking or something like that but instead of that I am into Sherlock Holmes," he said. He founded The Deerstalkers of Welshpool in March 2001, with the group now having about 20 members.

The group intends to ask the Welsh government for money towards the publishing costs, seeing the translations as a novel way of keeping the language alive.

Mr Upton-Holder said it cost £1,400 to translate and publish Y Cylch Brith.

His group has received donations from enthusiasts in the United States towards the costs. The popularity of Sherlock Holmes remains as strong as ever across the world.

Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock Holmes with Martin Freeman as Dr Watson is enjoying a resurgence thanks to the BBC Wales-produced TV drama Sherlock.

The show has been sold to broadcasters across the world, where it is either run with subtitles or dubbed.

And director Guy Ritchie's two cinema adaptations, starring Robert Downey Jnr and Jude Law as the iconic pair, were also worldwide hits.

For more information about the Deerstalkers of Welshpool Sherlock Holmes Society, and the Welsh translation of the detective stories visit www.sherlockholmeswelshpool.com

Some elementary facts about Sherlock Holmes:

• "Elfennol, fy annwyl Watson!" is Welsh for Elementary, my dear Watson!

• The books of Sherlock Holmes have been translated into 80 languages

• Holmes never actually says ‘Elementary, my dear Watson’ as one sentence

• In 1964, the books of Sherlock Holmes were the second biggest seller worldwide

• Holmes also boasts two musicals and a ballet called The Great Detective

• Holmes is the most-filmed fictional character – 226 films, many dubbed for a worldwide audience