The Surrey Retreat Where Peter Pan First Took Flight Is Now For Sale

Born to a handloom weaver in the Scottish burgh of Kirriemuir, the novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie ascended to literary heights from modest beginnings. Having been raised and educated in Scotland, Barrie made his move to London to begin his writing career. And it is here in his South Kensington home that he penned his novel The Little White Bird, his first work to feature the beloved character of Peter Pan. 

Though the novel was set and written in London, the inspiration for the boy who never grew up actually originated in an enchanting property located on the edge of Farnham in Surrey. The summer retreat was known to Barrie and his wife, the actress Mary Ansell, as Black Lake Cottage, but was later renamed to Lobswood Manor. In the 1970s the Manor was split into three homes, including the front portion of Barrie House which is currently on the market with Savills for £1.25m. 

Today, this wing of the Manor retains the character of the period through its original features and exposed timber. There is extensive oak panelling and an intricately carved beam above the living room fireplace, said to have be taken from the timber of a 16th century ship.The gardens of Barrie House remain much as they would have been during Mary Ansell and Barrie’s eight-year tenure – surrounded by Surrey’s hills, ancient woodlands and lakes, providing the perfect backdrop for the invention of Neverland. A site of local historic interest, today the building’s connection to Barrie is commemorated via a plaque on the façade.

The Influence Of The Llewelyn Davies Family

Barrie’s Kensington neighbours and family friends, the Llewelyn Davieses, were often invited to join the Barrie family at Black Lake Cottage, along with their five young sons – three of which were named Michael, John and Peter. When both their parents died from cancer in their fourties, the boys found a new guardian in Barrie. For his tale of the Lost Boys in Neverland the author drew influence from the names and personas of the Llewelyn Davies children, resulting in the characters of John and Michael Darling and, of course, Peter Pan. The relationship between the Llewelyn Davies boys and J. M. Barrie has been dramatised on screen on multiple occasions, first in the BBC-produced The Lost Boys miniseries (1978) and later in the film Finding Neverland (2004), starring Kate Winslet and Johnny Depp. 

In an unpublished photographic storybook by Barrie titled The Boy Castaways of Black Lake Island, the Llewelyn Davies boys were photographed at the summer retreat with Barrie’s dog, a St Bernard. Though Barrie wrote the Darling’s dog as a Newfoundland in his original tale, the 1953 Disney animation alluded to this connection by making Nanny the dog a St Bernard in the film. 

A Tragic Backstory 

Peter Pan has a certain youthful charm, from his flying abilities to his sense of escapism that allows children to forever be beyond their parents’ rules. However, Barrie’s story is also rooted in grief, having been partially inspired by the tragic loss of his older brother during a childhood ice-skating accident. As a result, Barrie’s brother has become the somber origin of the boy who never grew up.

The fates of the Llewelyn Davies boys was hardly an improvement, with one dying in military service, one drowning, and one dying of suicide. Though their deaths occurred long after the publication of Peter Pan, perhaps it was these tragedies that inspired J.M. Barrie to gift the rights of Peter Pan to Great Ormond Street Hospital in 1929, who still benefit from these royalties today under the ‘Peter Pan Clause’.

On the market for £1,250,000. Find out more at search.savills.com