Sophie Neville speaking about Richard Pilbrow at the National Theatre
I was invited to speak at the National Theatre by Fred Pilbrow who rehearsed the presentation at his studio in London.
He put together the most extraordinary celebration of the life and works of his father, Richard Pilbrow, who died recently at the age of ninety.
The most talented technicians in the theatre world gathered to speak on his life and works. A recording of the event has been made available on Youtube.
Sophie Neville speaks about making ‘Swallows and Amazons’ (1974) at 1.15.15
It was a fitting tribute to the man who lit up the lives of many and produced a movie that apparently has been broadcast on television more than any other British film and fifty years after the premier in Shaftesbury Avenue is streaming on Amazon today. Read more in ‘The Making of Swallows and Amazons’ now available on Audible.
Different editions of ‘The Making of Swallows and Amazons (1974) by Sophie Neville’
The April issue of Hampshire Life magazine has a four-page feature celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the release of the original movie ‘Swallows & Amazons’ (1974) in cinemas, which you can now read online here.
The link with Hampshire is that my father grew up in Lymington and learnt to sail on the Solent. I’ve lived in the county for twenty years, give talks at the Southampton Boat Show and meet the Nancy Blackett when she sails down to Buckler’s Hard on the Beaulieu River where my parents spent their honeymoon.
It feels odd being described as an actress, but it’s good to get a front page byline.
The original film ‘Swallows & Amazons’ was first screened at a preview in London on 31st March 1974.
Brian Doyle, the film publicist, noted it in his diary. This was sent to me by his daughter, Pandora Doyle, who was taken along with her mother Jo and friend Alison.
The cast of ‘Swallows and Amazons’ either joined them there or at an afternoon press screening on 2nd April. We certainly went to one preview. It utterly amazed us. We had not remembered the Lake District being so sunny.
The premiere was also held at the ABC cinema in Shaftesbury Avenue, London, at a Royal Gala Premier on 4th April 1974.
The film has since been dubbed into at least eight different languages and screened all over the world. A number of different titles have been used from ‘Svaler og Amasoner’ to ‘El Capitan Pirata’.
They do not provide a release date for the Czech Republic, but it has been dubbed into Czech twice and is popular there. You can easily buy copies of the French version
Caught shrieking on the cover of the French DVD of ‘Swallows and Amazons'(1974)
It is now screening on Netflix Europe and Amazon Prime.
There was a big splash when ‘Swallows & Amazons’ was first screened in Gloucester. Sten Grendon, who appeared as the Boy Roger, and I were taught to swim at the leisure centre there. Chris Maloney, who was awarded an MBE for his part in founding the Special Olympics, began to coach me when I was ten. I’ve been told that he also taught Sophia Loren to swim for ‘The “Goodness Gracious Me” Heiress’.
As we lived locally, Sten and I were asked to attend the first screening at the newly converted triple screen ABC in Gloucester, which was daunting. They were also screening ‘The Sting’ and ‘The Great Gatsby’ that both starred Robert Redford.
Chris Maloney later got Suzanna Hamilton and I jumping off the high board at Gloucester Leisure Centre. She was far braver than I.
– ‘He must be a retired Pirate’ but what of the chances of finding Rio Cinema?
The Cinema Museum, London – not that we paid these prices to enter
Keen fans of Claude Whatham’s original film ‘Swallows and Amazons’ gathered at the Cinema Museum in London for the 50th Anniversary celebrations hosted by the writer and broadcaster Brian Sibley.
After doors opened at 1.00pm, delicious food and drink was served in the main hall where Hugh Grant held his 50th Birthday party. Charlie Chaplin had been housed there as a child. It had been the chapel of the workhouse where his mother had been sent with her offspring.
A collection of movie memorabilia now lines the walls. It’s in incredible place.
Writers Brian Sibley and David Wood OBE
‘He said, – “Yes.”‘
Brian Sibley interviewed David Wood OBE, who at the age of twenty-nine had adapted Arthur Ransome’s book into a 90 minute screenplay under the iron fist of the widowed Mrs Ransome. Born in Russia, she had been Leo Trotsky’s private secretary and was a pretty formidable old lady.
Sophie Neville, Suzanna Hamilton & Sten Grendon with David Wood and Claude Whatham in 1973
David told us that having taken the producer, Richard Pilbrow, and his associate Neville C Thompson around various Lake District locations, Evgenia Ransome declared she wanted the Swallows to all have blue eyes and blonde hair. I’d know that she wanted ‘And English rose’ to play Titty, but this was news to me.
Although David was well known for his starring role in the film ‘If….’ with Malcolm McDowell, ‘Swallows and Amazons’ was the first movie he wrote. He’s been too busy acting on stage to spend much time on location but entrusted the script changes to the director.
The film screening was heralded by a letter from Dame Virginia McKenna, which I was given the privilege of reading out.
Reading a letter of good wishes from Dame Virginia McKenna
‘It is almost impossible to believe that it is the 50th Anniversary of ‘Swallows and Amazons’. I am really sorry I cannot be with you but I am here in spirit.
For anyone who feels downhearted by the troubles in our present-day world, there can be no better cure than to be here this afternoon watching this delightful film set in such beautiful scenery.
In a few moments you will be transported to an earlier time and a different place. You cannot but enjoy this very special film.’
We then watched StudioCanal’s remastered version of the movie on the big screen. The Lakeland mountains looked magnificent and the detail amazing. Gareth Tandy, who had worked on the crew as Third Assistant Director said, ‘I’d totally forgotten that I played one of the robbers!
After an intermission, I chatted to Peter Robb-King the Make Up Designer and met up with Cedric James who’s been on the camera crew.
The cast of ‘Swallows and Amazons’ (1974) gathered for the 50th Anniversary – photo Lee Pressman of the Cinema Museum
‘They’ve got India-rubber necks.’
Brian Sibley then interviewed the cast on how we’d got the parts, what impact the film had on our lives and what we’d spent our earnings on.
Brian Sibley, Simon West, Suzanna Hamilton, Sophie Neville, Sten Grendon, Kit Seymour and David Wood – photo: Lee Pressman
The answers proved hilarious. It was lovely to hear from Jane Grendon, Sten’s mum, who had travelled from Gloucestershire to be our official chaperone. She pointed out how very hard we had worked all that time ago.
Neville C Thomason’s daughter-in-law spoke and I displayed the flags that Richard Pilbrow had sent from America before he sadly passed away at the age of 90.
Simon West, Suzanna Hamilton, Sophie Neville, Sten Grendon, Kit Seymour, Jane Grendon, Peter Robb-King and David Wood – photo: Lee Pressman
There was then time for fans to get books, cards and film posters signed in the age-old tradition. Many thanks go to Brian, Lee Pressman and other volunteers of the Cinema Museum who made it all possible. It was an amazing day. One young fan had come dressed as Titty with a green parrot on her shoulder, there were a few diminutive Amazons in red hats and Neville Thompson’s great granddaughters arrived in very smart pirate jackets.
Perry Neville, who appears briefly in the Rio scene, with Sophie Neville and David Middleton of The Arthur Ransome Society
‘Farewell and Adieu.’
Don’t worry if you missed it! There will be another chance to meet the cast and crew at Windermere Jetty in Cumbria on 29th and 30th June, when we will be having a Swallows and Amazons weekend with the boats featured in the film including Swallow, Amazon, Osprey and Lady Elizabeth as well as MV Tern, Arthur Ransome’s dinghy used as the model for Scrab and Titmouse that appeared in the BBC adaptation of ‘Coot Club’. You can find details of events on this website here.
The Cinema Museum in London – once a workhouse where Charlie Chaplin lived
Celebrating 50th Anniversary of the movie ‘Swallows and Amazons’ in 2024
On Saturday 6th April there was be a 50th Anniversary screening of the original film ‘Swallows and Amazons’ followed by a Q&A with cast and crew hosted by Brian Sibley and the screenwriter David Wood at the Cinema Museum in London. More info and link to ticket sales here.
A train strike complicated plans for many ! but cast members Simon West (Captain John), Suzanna Hamilton (Mate Susan), Sten Grendon (Boy Roger) and Kit Seymour (Captain Nancy) managed to make it, along with Gareth Tandy, who worked on the crew as Third Assistant director, and Jane Grendon who was our chaperone.
Daphne Neville with Stephen Grendon, Suzanna Hamilton, Sophie Neville, Jane Grendon and Simon West
Cedric James who worked on the camera came along.
As did our Make Up Designer Peter Robb-King .
Sophie Neville being made up for the part of Titty by Peter Robb-King in 1973
I hoped Terry Needham, the Second Assistant might be able to make it but he is in New Zealand.
Sophie Neville with Terry Needham and the unit radio at Derwentwater ~ photo: Daphne Neville
It was packed with every seat sold – a tribute to all the others on the crew who have passed away.
The screening took place at the Cinema Museum, 2 Dugard Way (off Renfrew Road) Kennington, London SE11 4TH, a former workhouse where Charlie Chaplin once stayed.
Thanks go to David Wood for getting us all together.
As the 50th Anniversary of the original film Swallows and Amazons (1974) approaches, Terence MacMath interviewed me for the Church Times. You can read the article here It is free to read online this March.
My book on travelling around southern Africa, Ride the Wings of Morning, was reviewed here
The Church Times also reviewed Funnily Enough. It can be found here
Terence is interviewing Suzanna Hamilton next. We are being joined by Simon West, Sten Grendon and Kit Seymour to give a Q&A with Brian Sibley and David Wood before a big screen showing of Swallows and Amazons at the Cinema Museum on 6th April 2024 and will be going to the Swallows and Amazons Festival at Windermere Jetty on 29th and 30th June 2024.
Up to date information on forthcoming events can be found on the Events Page of this website here
Sophie Neville with Suzanna Hamilton in Swallows and Amazons (1974)
On Saturday 6th April at 2.00pm there will be a 50th Anniversary screening of the original film ‘Swallows and Amazons’ followed by a Q&A with cast and crew hosted by Brian Sibley and the screenwriter, David Wood at the Cinema Museum in London. More info and link to ticket sales here.
On Saturday 29th & Sunday 30th June 2024 a Swallows and Amazons Festival is being held at Windermere Jetty Museum near Bowness-on-Windermere in Cumbria hosted by Lakeland Arts and The Arthur Ransome Society. We are hoping that members of the cast and crew will be able to come and share their stories, including Kerry Darbishire (below) who still lives in Cumbria. Now a poet, she appeared in the opening scenes as Vicky’s nurse.
Kerry Darbishire who played Vicky’s nurse in ‘Swallows and Amazons'(1974)
The Arthur Ransome Society is bringing Swallow and Amazon, the dinghies used in the film which they now own, along with Titmouse from ‘Coot Club’. The steamboats Osprey and Lady Elizabeth that appeared in the Rio scene of the 1974 film will be at Windermere Jetty. Hopefully the original Amazon owned by the Altounyan family, and Arthur Ransome’s own dinghy Coch-y-Bonddhu that he used as the model for Scarab will be there with the RNSA dinghies that played Swallow and Amazon in the 2016 movie. There may well be trips on MV Tern and the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway.
Sophie Neville with Titmouse – now beautifully renovated
Saturday 13th July – A screening of Swallows and Amazons (1974) at the Riverside Cinema in Woodbridge, Suffolk.
People who read the paperback on ‘The Making of Swallows and Amazons’ ask how I could remember what happened on each day in such detail, but I had the diaries I’d kept on location and was able to rewatch the film on my laptop, studying the detail.
Aged twelve, I was a little older than Simon West who played Captain John, so I was able to recall more. He now reckons that having my mother on location with me must have helped as we would have discussed each day at the time and would have naturally chatted about shared experiences. She also took hundreds of behind the scenes photos, along with home movie footage captured on her cine camera.
Daphne Neville with Sophie Neville while filming ‘Swallows and Amazons’ in Cumbria. Kit Seymour is walking along the jetty in the background.
Fans of the DVDs write in from all over the world offering encouragement: “I was able to catch up on Swallows and Amazons Forever! I’ve only been waiting a lot of decades to watch this. It was fabulous and you embodied Titty. I now need to re-read Ransome’s book and yours.” Suzie Eisfelder, Melbourne, Australia
Once screened in cinemas with ‘The Sting’ and ‘The Great Gatsby’, ‘Swallows and Amazons’ (1974) has been labelled a Vintage Classic. The good thing about this is that the DVD includes an interesting Extras package. Here is one of the original reviews:
People often ask how making the original film of ‘Swallows and Amazons’ influenced my life. What struck me when I last saw the 1974 film trailer on Amazon Prime was that it begins with Titty saying, ‘The endless trek, through the Sahara Desert…’ In 1985, I did just that, crossing the Sahara on an expedition led by Charlie Mayhew, now CEO of the charity TUSK. I made my first documentary on the aid projects we worked on when we eventually reached Kenya. Had uttering those lines when I was little influenced my decision to drive from London to Johannesburg?
Sophie Neville on an endless trek, crossing the Sahara Desert – photo James Lindsay
People who know Arthur Ransome’s books are able to point out where the original film of Swallows and Amazons made mistakes. Janet Mearns noted that the Swallows ‘certainly didn’t take enamel mugs’ camping, ‘because they took extra in case of breakages.’ I had never noticed!
Andrew Clayton pointed out that, ‘Someone (Hugh Brogan?) Said that John was the lad he wanted to be. Titty, while based on an original person, carries some of his dreams and literary interests.’
Making a film while crossing the Sahara Desert in 1985
Peter Wright, former chairman of The Arthur Ransome Society, noticed that I sang ‘Adieu and Farewell’ instead of ‘Farewell and Adieu to you fair Spanish Ladies’ as the Swallows sailed from the jetty below Holly Howe. I now realize this mistake may have been due to the influence of ‘The Sound of Music’, which was the first movie I ever saw in the cinema. Captivated by the big screen at the age of four, I must have had the lyrics – ‘So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, adieu, Adieu, adieu, to yieu and yieu and yieu,’ imprinted on my brain.
I didn’t sing very well, but one of the secrets to the integrity of the film was that there was no vanity. None of us sought to further ourselves. Self promotion was an unknown concept. We had no personal agenda. We were not there for the money or any reason other than to live out the life portrayed in the books. All of us spurned the publicity and still find it surreal.
Someone also said how much they would have loved to live through a scene from ‘Swallows and Amazons’. We were fortunate enough to live through an abridged version of the book, which is what my parents hoped. It must have been one reason why my headmistress let me take a term off school to appear in the film.
Sophie Neville writing letters from Africa with the author Rebecca Hunter
Since then I went on to lead a ‘Swallows and Amazons’ style life, exploring unchartered territory, which isn’t always easy, I was touched when a fan of the books wrote:
‘Arthur Ransome has helped me through some very difficult times – when you are at your wits end to know what to do or where to turn, it is so refreshing to return to the Lake, or Norfolk, to a peace and tranquillity where you can forget your problems and just enjoy the adventures of the Swallows, Amazons, D’s, Coots, wherever you happen to be.’
Sophie Neville in a vehicle that we submerged in Moremi. The shoes were later stolen in Mosambique, the Toyota in Johannesburg ~ photo: Rebecca Hunter
Nigel H Seymour wrote, ‘…every-time I put the ‘Swallow’s and Amazon’s film on, I’m transported into another dimension and another time. it’s so very refreshingly simple and innocent, it radiates with a romanticism and happiness which has sadly been lost now for ever, but luckily we have the film and we still have ‘You’….. to keep the memory alive!’
The audiobook of The Making of Swallows and Amazons (1974
Sophie Neville being made up for the part of Titty by Peter Robb-King in 1973
Peter Robb-King, the Make-up Designer on ‘Swallows and Amazons'(1974) rang up to say he had my milk-tooth that had fallen out half-way through a scene with Virginia McKenna. ‘It’s in a metal film canister, which I’d taken to a dentist to try and get a replacement.’
He said that although not his first movie, ‘Swallows and Amazons’ was his first film when he was in charge of Make-Up design. ‘I hoped initially to work at the BBC but was turned down for being a man.’ It just happened that he went on a supernumerary training scheme for feature film make-up in 1968, starting on ‘The Avengers’.
He said the highlight of his career would be impossible to pin point, but he worked on some iconic movies including The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Legend with Tom Cruise and some of the Star Wars, Batman and Indiana Jones pictures. At one time he rescued a parrot while making an Indiana Jones film in Sri Lanka. ‘Three ring-necked parakeet chicks were thrown out of their nest by a crow and rescued by the animal handler. One was adopted by Stephen Spielburg, another by the production manager, while Peter and his wife brought up the third, which lived with them for twenty-five years.
Ronald Fraser as Captain Flint with Daphne Neville and Sophie Neville playing Titty Walker on Derwentwater in 1973
Peter knew Ronnie Fraser’s addiction to alcohol would be difficult for the crew to deal with but managed to get him in and out of the make-up caravan.
‘He wasn’t alone at the time. There were a number of screen actors at the time who you’d think would never be able to say a line but they’d end up word-perfect.’ He didn’t recall any difficult moments with Ronnie. Peter reckoned that one of the reasons why they didn’t make a sequel could have been Ronnie’s problem. ‘He may have damaged his own career. It’s difficult for the other actors.’ He thought it sad that there was never a sequel.
Ronald Fraser, Peter Robb-King (make-up) and Ian Whitaker (set dresser) on the houseboat in 1973
Peter told me that, ‘Denis Lewiston (the director of photography on ‘Swallows and Amazons’) was scared of green. He didn’t like photographing the colour green, which everyone thought hysterical since we were filming in the Lake District.’
Dennis Lewiston, director of Photography on ‘Swallows and Amazons’ ~photo:Richard Pilbrow
Denis Lewiston, the brilliant cinematographer, has died but he was around to approve the remastered version of the BluRay and DVD of ‘Swallows and Amazons’ in 2014. After a long and fulfilling career he will be remembered fondly and admired for the numerous films he made, seeking excellence with every sequence.
To see some of the shots Denis set up for the film of ‘Swallows & Amazons'(1974), please click here for the BFI site. Peter assured me that a recent industry survey of children’s films rated ‘Swallows and Amazons’ (1974) as one of the best ever.
Peter Robb-King was one of the few people to formally retire from the film industry. ‘It’s very rare. Many people don’t retire. They just stop working.’ His daughter sent him a picture of him making me up on the set of Swallows and Amazons. ‘I remember what I looked like then, so it was interesting.’
The classic film Swallows and Amazons – currently streaming on Amazon – was made fifty years ago, and yet it still fascinates viewers. Here are a few interesting questions and points raised by Arthur Ransome enthusiasts that I ought to include in the next edition of my book written to accompany the remastered DVDs. It’s now out as an audiobook.
Roy Haslam wrote: ‘Must be a wonderful feeling to be connected to Swallows and Amazons that is loved by millions.’
I replied saying it could be overwhelming, but his comment made me think: If you could chose any movie to appear in what would it be? The amazing thing about the 1974 version of Swallows and Amazons was that we made it entirely on location. There were no computer graphics. There was no studio work until we reached the post-sync stage. We simply lived out the pages of the book.
Radio Times 1979 when ‘Swallows and Amazons’ was first broadcast five years after it was released in cinemas
Mike Clay thought, ‘for you children it must have been a confusing mixture of great excitement, frustration and boredom!’
It was in someways, but I would not say I was frustrated by anything more than falling behind at school. Missing the summer term put me in the second stream for Maths.
Hilary Dodd wrote: ‘I worked at the Warterhead Hotel at the time they were making Swallows and Amazons and the lead actors stayed there. Virginia McKenna, Brenda Bruce, Ronald Fraser, if memory serves. I was in charge of taking their order for dinner and generally making sure that they had everything they wanted in the restaurant. Miss McKenna was charming and treated all of us with courtesy, respect and politeness. The film company threw a big party at the end of filming for the locals as a thank you for the hospitality they received. We all worked incredibly hard but it was an exciting experience.’
‘Swallows and Amazons’ (1974) screened on Talking Pictures TV on 30th December 2021
David Thomson says he was sixteen at the time and a film extra in the Bowness scenes. ‘One member of the crew used the name Pierse Jessop when chatting up pretty girls in Ambleside.’ He was around on set but not a member of the film crew. As I remember, he provided the mobile loos.
A local lady told everyone she played Dame Virginia McKenna in the long-shots. I miss-spelt her name Toni Turner. It was Joni Turner. This idea could have been mooted as a possibility, but in the end there was no need for a double. Joni worked on set as Suzanna’s stand-in for a few days and is wearing Mrs Walker’s cardigan in one behind-the-scenes shot so she might have worked as a stand-in for Virginia McKenna, enabling the lighting cameraman to set up before the actors arrived on set.
Mike wrote that, “re-reading the stories virtually taught me to handle a dinghy. My thanks go to Arthur Ransome!”
Roger Sturge added, “Roger Altounyan taught my parents to sail in Mavis aka Amazon on Coniston Water in 1936.” He would have been aged about fourteen. “They always said while they were learning, Arthur Ransome would sail round them, but I’m not sure of the veracity of that… My first of many childhood adventures sailing on Coniston was in Amazon as a one year-old.”
…. a review of the DVD by Kieron Tyler who later observes, ‘it is also amusing watching… John (Simon West) bossing his younger brother and sisters about’, which is true! He read the wind, while we just sat in the boat waiting for orders.
Noel Flay Cass of The Arthur Ransome Group: ‘To put it in sailing terms, it can be very easy to think that you are a good sailor, or that sailing is easy, when the wind and tide are with you. It’s worth remembering that it might not seem so when you are always tacking against an ebb.’
Jennifer Bailey writes: ‘For the record, my daughter loves that you call out “Kill, kill!” approaching the houseboat. She finds Titty gratifyingly bloodthirsty.’
Neil Jeffery ‘Living on the coast in Cornwall as a child, I fell in love with the lakes first through your film and then the books! As a young child I so wanted a friend like Titty.’ He added, ‘I always escape back in time every year or so, most often with Swallows & Amazons. All classics, and probably led to my first career as a Deck Officer in Merchant Navy.’
You can watch the film trailer on Amazon Prime
The 1974 film was described as, ‘An escapade that brims over with laughter.’
‘I certainly think ‘Swallows and Amazons’ is top-of-the-crop of those made in 1973/74. The others haven’t stayed in the public mind anywhere near as long. I think ‘Swallows and Amazons'(1974) fully deserves the appellation ‘Timeless Classic’.’ Daivd Butters ‘You don’t realise how much thought and hard work goes into filming even a short sequence. I love the story about the sheep!’
I’m often greeted as a long-lost friend. It’s because characters in the stories have become friends to many.
Sekhmet of the Terven KPSS wrote that as a child, ‘I was so convinced that the Swallows and Amazons were all real people that I wrote to them to ask if I could go sailing with them. My mum kindly wrote me a postcard back from them. I recognised her handwriting, but it was still a lovely thing to do.’
One good thing about the film is that it helps us understand more about the book of Swallows and Amazons and subsequent novels in the series. Jon Blanchard writes, ‘I am just reading Picts and Martyrs noticing it is the only book where the Amazons appear without the Swallows. Then I wondered why the Amazons, unlike the Ds and Swallows, do not appear in a book on their own. And I came up with an answer. Nancy and Peggy are only seen through the eyes of the others. We get to see through the eyes of Titty, Roger and Dorothea and know their thoughts. We also see into the minds of Dick and occasionally John, although they are less interested in other people. But we do not get into the minds of Susan and the Amazons. Everyone looks up to Nancy and Peggy is her sidekick, so they would not work as the centre of consciousness in a whole book. All the others have doubts and anxieties however much they long for adventure, but Nancy never. There would not be any tension.
Sophie Neville 