Amazon and Swallow are perhaps two of the most famous dinghies in film history, having sailed into cinemas nearly 50 years ago.
Both of these clinker-built boats now belong to The Arthur Ransome Society, and the challenge is to fully restore these traditional craft so that families can set their sails and live out the pages of Arthur Ransome’s iconic books today.
At the age of 12, I was cast as Able Seaman Titty when the original film Swallows and Amazons was made on location in the Lake District in the summer of 1973. Dame Virginia McKenna played my mother and the six of us children had fun making Ronald Fraser walk the plank. Now hailed as a classic sailing film, I’m assured it has been broadcast on British television more times than any other movie and is currently streaming on Amazon and Netflix Europe.
Behind the scenes
One secret is that the film was made on four different lakes–Coniston Water, Windermere, Elterwater, Derwentwater–and a smelly lily pond. We were able to use Bank Ground Farm as Holly Howe and Brown Howe as Beckfoot, home to the Amazon Pirates (Nancy and Peggy Blackett) who careened their dinghy on
