Famous Private Detectives in
Novels, Movies, and Television--

Gil Jourdan along with partners Libellule and Crouton →
A Belgian dectective handles various cases which sometimes took them to many countries in comics titled Tout Gil Jourdan (Created by Maurice Tillieux).
•Comics: 1956‑1989.

James Hazell → Portrayed by Nicholas Ball.
A cockney private detective in the British TV drama Hazell (Created by Gordon Williams and Terry Venables).
•TV drama: 1978‑1979.

Sam Spade → Portrayed in the 1941 movie by Humphrey Bogart
A hard and shifty P.I. in a novel, short stories, and movies, including The Maltese Falcon (Created by Dashiell Hammett).
•Novel: 1930 •Short stories: 1932  •Movies: 1931‑1978.

Elona Holmes → Portrayed by Millie "Bobby" Brown
The sister of Sherlock Holmes in the book series The Enola Holmes Mysteries and the movie Enola Holmes (Created by Nancy Springer).
•Book series: 2006‑2010 •Movie: 2020.

Jack Casey → Portrayed by Richard Carlye
A photographer who helps the police solve crimes in books, movies, radio, and the TV series Casey, Crime Photographer (Created by George Harmon Coxe).
•Books: 1942‑1964 •Movies: 1936, 1938  •TV series: 1951‑1952.

Nero Wolfe → Portrayed in the 2001 TV series by Maury Chaykin
An armchair detective in novels, short stories, movies, radio, and several TV series including A Nero Wolfe Mystery (Created by Rex Stout).
•Novels: 1934‑1985 •Movies: 1936, 1937  •TV series: 1981, 2001‑2003.

Bulldog Drummond → Portrayed by Ronald Coleman
A gentleman adventurer in novels, short stories, and several movies including Calling Bulldog Drummond (Created by H. C. McNeile).
•Novels: 1920‑1969 •Short stories: 1937  •Movies: 1922‑1969.

Dr. John Thorndyke → Portrayed in the 1964 TV series by Peter Copley
A medical doctor and forensic specialist in a series of novels and short stories and TV series including The Case of Oscar Brodski (Created by R. Austin Freeman).
•Novels: 1907‑1942.

Albert Campion → TV portrayal by Peter Davidson
An aristocrat in the early 20th century in several novels and the TV series Campion (Created by Margery Allingham).
•Novels: 1930‑1965 •TV series: 1989‑1990.

Arsène Lupin → Portrayed by Georges Descrières
Gentleman thief and master of disguise in books, stage, comics, numerous movies, and several TV series including the French show Arsène Lupin (Created by Mauraice Leblanc ).
•Books: 1907‑2012 •Movies: 1908‑2011  •TV series: 1971‑2007.

Sid Halley → Portray on TV by Mike Gwilym
Former British jump racing Champion Jockey in a TV series based on novels such as Whip Hand (Created by Dick Francis).
•Novels: 1965‑1995 •TV series: 1979.

Ellery Queen → Portrayed in the 1975 TV series by Jim Hutton
A mystery writer and editor of a magazine in novels, movies, and several TV series including The Adventures of Ellery Queen (Ghost writers as Ellery Queen).
•Novels: 1929‑71 •TV series:1950‑1956, 1975‑1976  •Movies: 1940‑1942.

Brother Cadfael → Portrayed by Derek Jacobi
An early 12th-century monk in the novel series and TV series Cadfael (Created by Ellis Peters also known as Edith Pargeter).
•Novels: 1977‑1994 •TV series: 1994‑1998.

Dave Robicheaux → Portrayed by Tommy Lee Jones
Former New Orleans officer and recovering alcoholic in the book series and two movies including The Electric Mist (Created by James Lee Burke).
•Books: 1987‑2013 •Movies: 1996, 2009.

Nancy Drew → Portrayed by various actors over the years including Sophia Lillis in the 2019 film as seen in image.
A young high school graduate in many books, a TV series and several movies including the 2019 movie Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (Many writers under the ghost name Carolyn Keene ).
•Novels: 1930‑2003 •TV series: 1997, 1995, 2019  •Movies: 1938‑1939, 2002.

Nestor Burma → Portrayed by Guy Marchand
French private detective in a series of books and the TV series Nestor Burma (Created by Léo Malet).
•Books: 1943‑1983 •TV series: 1991.

Simon Templar (known as The Saint) → Portrayed by Roger Moore in the TV series
A British amateur detective portrayed in books, radio, movies and TV by various actors over many years; for example, in the TV series The Saint (Originally created by Leslie Charteris).
•Books: 1928‑1963 •Movies: 1938‑1943  •Radio: 1944‑1951  •Comics: 1948‑1961.

Lew Archer (renamed to Harper in movies) → Portrayed by Paul Newman
An often world-weary P.I. working in Southern California in books, a TV series and movies such as Harper (Book written by Ross MacDonald).
•Books: 1949‑1976 •TV series: 1975  •Movies: 1966, 1974, 1975.

Hildegarde Withers → Portrayed by Edna May Oliver and later others.
Spinster school teacher and amateur detective who collaborates, and frequently butts heads, with Inspector Oscar Piper in a series of novels and movies such as Murder on the Blackboard (Created by Stuart Palmer).
•Novels: 1932‑1969 •Movies: 1932‑1972.

Sally Lockhart → Portrayed by Billie Piper
A teen-age girl in the novel series and TV shows such as The Shadow in the North (Created by Philip Pullman).
•Novels: 1872‑1882 •Movie: 2006, 2007.

Philo Vance → Portrayed in the 1933 movie by William Powell
An aristocrat of unusual culture and brilliance in novels and movies including The Kennel Murde Case (Created by S. S. Van Dine).
•Novels:1926‑1939 •Movies: 1929‑1947.

Sherlock Holmes-1 → Portrayed in the 1983 movie by Ian Richardson
A renowned detective in four novels, 56 short stories, and many movies including The Hound of the Baskervilles (Created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle).
•Novels: 1887‑1915 •Short stories: 1891‑1927  •Movies: many  •TV series: many.

Nancy Drew → Portrayed in the 2007 movie by Emma Roberts
A young teenager, then young woman in several novel series including Nancy Drew Mystery Stories (Created by Edward Stratemeyer).
•Novels: 1930‑2003, 2002‑2012 •Movie: 2007.

Miss Marple → Portrayed in movies by Margaret Rutherford
An old spinster is of independent means in a novels series, movies and TV series including 4.50 from Paddington (Created by Agatha Christie).
•Novels: 1930‑1976 •Movies: 1961‑1964  •TV series: 1984‑1992, 2004‑2013.

Jesse Stone → Portrayed by Tom Selleck
Former baseball shortstop and homicide detective in the book series and several movies, such as Benefit of the Doubt (Created by Robert B. Parker).
•Books: 1997‑2015 •Movies: 2005‑2012.

Frank and Joe Hardy (The Hardy Boys) → Portrayed by Parker Stevenson and Shaun Cassidy
Teenage brothers and amateur detectives in a series of books and a TV series The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries (Created by Edward Stratemeyer).
•Books: 1929‑present •TV series: 1974‑1977.

V. I. Warshawski → Portrayed in the movie by Kathleen Turner
A lean and athletic female P.I. appearing novels, short stories, and the movie V.I. Warshawski (Created by Sara Paretsky).
•Novels: 1982‑2013 •Movie: 1991.

Tommy and Tuppence Beresford → TV portrayal of Tommy by David Walliams, of Tuppence by Jessica
A typical upper middle class couple in novels, short stories and in the TV series Partners in Crime (Created by Agatha Christie).
•Novels: 1922‑1973 •TV series: 2015.

C. Auguste Dupin →
An upper class gentleman appearing in stories by such as The Murders in the Rue Morgue (Created by Edgar Allan Poe).
•Novels: 1841,1842, 1844.

Sister Fidelma →
A Celtic nun in the middle of the 7th century who solves mysteries in the book series Sister Fidelma Mysteries (Created by Berresford Ellis, aka Peter Tremayne).
•Books: 1994‑2015.

Beverly Gray →
A young woman solving mysteries in various venues Beverly Gray Mystery Stories (Written by Clair Blank).
•Novels: 1034‑1955.

Bernie Little (image from 2015 book cover of Bernie's canine companion) →
A down-on-his-luck P.I. in the series of novels beginning with Dog on It (Created by Spencer Quinn, aka Peter Abrahams).
•Novels: 2009‑2020.

William Monk (image from book cover) →
An inspector, fired from the police force, becomes a private investigator in the series of novels featuring William Monk (Created by Anne Perry).
•Novels: 1990‑2018.

Agaton Sax →
Owner of a detective agency in an animated movie and animated TV series, based on several Swedish novels including Agaton Sax and the London Computer Plot (Created by Nils Olof Franzén).
•Novels: 1955‑1978 •Movie: 1976  •TV series: 1976.

Tif and Tondu (no last names for the duo) →
Adventurers and detectives who solve cases around the world in the Belgian comic strip Tif et Tondu (Created by Fernand Dineur).
•Comic strip: 1938‑1997 •Books: 1954‑1997.