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The last passage of Halley's Comet around the Sun took place in 1986; it then started travelling outwards and it will reach its most distant point, somewhere beyond Neptune's orbit around 2024. Halley's Comet will next return to the Earth in 2062.
One of the great controversies among skygazers, besides the possible existence of life beyond the Earth and the origin of the Universe, is the earthshaking question of how to pronounce "Halley". While some hold to the view that Edmond Halley pronounced his surname "Hawley", the most accepted opinion is that it rhymes with "Sally". Traditionally, comet names are composed of the word "comet" followed by a proper if name. So if you want to part of the in-group of skygazers, always refer to Halley's Comet as Comet Halley with a short "a".
Edmond Halley did not actually discover Comet Halley. The first definite sighting of the comet took place over 2,000 years ago and there have been recordings of almost every apparition between then and now. What Halley discovered, with some help from his friend Isaac Newton, was that the comet that appeared in 1531 and 1607 was the same that he himself saw in 1682. Halley furthermore predicted that the same comet would show up again on Christmas 1758. Though Halley never lived to see his theory proven (he would have to have reached the age of 102), on Christmas night of 1758 the comet appeared within a day of his prediction and has been known as Halley’s Comet ever since.