Joseph Bell

Early life Bell was born in Edinburgh to Cecilia Barbara Craigie (1813–1882) and Benjamin Bell (1810–1883), the heir to a family tradition of medical distinction. He was a great-grandson of Benjamin Bell, considered to be the first Scottish scientific surgeon, and his father, grandfather, and great-uncle were all eminent doctors. In 1863, he was admitted to the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.

Career In his instruction, Bell emphasised the importance of close observation in making a diagnosis. A successful diagnosis, Bell taught students, needed a doctor to "observe carefully, deduce shrewdly, and confirm with evidence" – a technique which he termed "The Method". In 1876, he was elected a member of the Aesculapian Club. He was elected President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh in 1887.

Bell wrote several medical textbooks including the Manual of the Operations of Surgery, published in 1866.

Personal life In 1865, Bell married Edith Katherine Erskine Murray (1840–1874), daughter of the Hon. James Erskine Murray of the Elibank family. Together they had five children, three of whom survived infancy: Jane (or Jean) Isabella Erskine Murray McCance (née Bell) (18 January 1866 - 1923) Cecilia Craigie Stisted (née Bell) (7 December 1867 - 8 July 1955) Benjamin Bell (14 July 1869 - 17 June 1893) Katherine (or Catherine) Bell (27 June 1872 - ?)

Bell died on 4 October 1911. When conceiving his fictional detective Sherlock Holmes, Doyle recalled: "I thought of my old teacher, Joe Bell, and of his eagle face, of his curious ways, or his eerie tricks of spotting details. If he were a detective, he would surely reduce this fascinating but unorganized business to something nearer to an exact science".

Bell was involved in several police investigations, mostly in Scotland. Bell assisted in the investigation into the murder of Elizabeth Chantrelle in 1878, along with Edinburgh forensic expert Henry Littlejohn.

In the Doctor Who episode "Tooth and Claw" in 2006, the time travelling adventurer known as the Doctor identifies himself as an ex-student of Bell to Queen Victoria.

The comic book Les dossiers du Professeur Bell by Joann Sfar is about the (fictional) supernatural adventures of Dr Bell.

In episode 11, Season 5, of the Fox TV show House M.D., Wilson presents House with Joseph Bell's Manual Of the Operations of Surgery as a Christmas gift. The character of House is based on Holmes, who, as noted, was based in turn on Bell. In episode 14 of the show's eighth and final season, House briefly comes to believe that his biological father is a man named Thomas Bell, played by prominent Scottish actor Billy Connolly.

The novel Mr. Doyle & Dr. Bell (1997) by Howard Engel is a fictionalized account of Joseph Bell and his influence on Conan Doyle.

In Elementary, an American procedural drama television series that was introduced as a contemporary update of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's stories of Sherlock Holmes, Holmes and Watson often work with a Detective called Marcus Bell, which is likely a nod to the real-life Joseph Bell.

Memorial On 8 October 2011, the centenary of Bell's death, a bronze memorial plaque was erected at 2 Melville Crescent in Edinburgh, his home for his final decades. The plaque explains Bell's connection to Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes, and was organised and funded by the Japan Sherlock Holmes Club. The building is now the Japanese Consulate in Edinburgh.