The original and best

James Matthew Barrie was born in Kirriemuir Scotland on the 9th May 1860. He later graduated from Edinburgh University and moved to London to fulfil his dream of being in the world of literature and the theatre.

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In 1897 Barrie befriended the Llewelyn Davis family and quickly became like an uncle figure to the families five boys. And it was these boys who gave him the inspiration for Peter Pan. Barrie would later say, “I made Peter by rubbing the five of you violently together, as savages with two sticks produce a flame. That is all Peter is – the spark I got from you.”

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Although the character of Peter first appeared in a chapter of a Barrie story, ‘The Little White Bird’ in 1902, it wasn’t until later that Barrie wrote the stage play Peter Pan. It opened at the Duke of York theatre in 1904 and was a huge success. Barrie then wrote the novelisation of the play in 1911 and called it ‘Peter and Wendy.’ It was an instant bestseller, and has never been out of print since.

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For more information please visit jmbarrie.co.uk

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