'Is Swallows and Amazons a true story?'

‘Voyage of the Swallow’ – an excellent radio play

‘Why is it called Swallows and Amazons?’ and ‘Is Swallows and Amazons a true story?’ happen to be some of the frequent questions typed into the Google search engine. Some of the answers can be found in the radio play ‘Voyage of the Swallow’ starring Richard Briers as Arthur Ransome and Susannah York as his Russian wife, Evgenia.

Martin Neville aboard MV Tern on Windermere — Martin Neville looking remarkable like Richard Briers aboard MV Tern on Windermere

‘What kind of boat is in Swallows and Amazons?’ is another question, and ‘Was Tom Cruise filming in the Lake District?

‘The boat now known as Swallow I was owned by the Collingwood Family when they lived at Lane Head above Coniston Water in the early twentieth century . Dora and Barbara Collingwood taught Arthur Ransome to sail in her when he came to stay with them in the summer holidays. Swallow II was purchased by Dora’s husband Ernest Altouyan along with a similar dinghy they called Mavis. Both boats were brought up on a lorry from Barrow-in-Furness. The interesting question is how the Mavis became known as Amazon in the books. Did Ransome give her a new name because Evgenia, described as a ‘tall, jolly girl’ nearly six foot tall, had struck him as being Amazonian in nature?

Please leave any questions you might have in the Comments below.

You can find many of the answers in ‘The Making of Swallows and Amazons’ available Available direct from the publisher, on Amazon.co.uk + Amazon.com and other Amazon sites, from Waterstones, The Great British Bookshop, the Aldeburgh Bookshop and all good bookshops, suitable for all ages. Signed copies help raise funds for the Nancy Blackett Trust, who stock them in their online shop.

Titty was the name of an imaginative and ‘highly original’ little girl who Arthur Ransome first got to know in the Lake District when she was aged eight. When I met her niece Barbara Altounyan, she was most amused to hear that I had once played her Auntie Titty.

Sophie Neville as Titty in Swallows and Amazons

~Sophie Neville playing Titty Altounyan in the 1974 film ‘Swallows & Amazons’. Official photograph taken a Bank Ground Farm above Coniston Water copyright: StudioCanal~

I’d brought Barbara some long lost family photographs that included some of Titty’s wedding in Aleppo. They are beautiful.

Titty and Ernest - wedding in 1954

Titty on the arm of her father, Dr Ernest Altounyan in Aleppo, 1954

Titty Altounyan's wedding

Titty on her wedding day with her husband Melkon Guzelian, her sister-in-law, her father Ernest Altounyan, her mother Dora and brother Roger, far right. You can also see Roger, Ernest and Dora below, with Roger’s wife standing far right.

Titty's wedding group

There is also a more informal shot.

Titty's wedding in 1954

‘Don’t you want to know about Titty?’ Barbara asked me. ‘She was a very detailed person and quite a perfectionist.’ I knew she was a wonderful artist who had studied under Henry Moore at the Chealsea School of Art. Although she produced a lot of colourful art, she was unwilling to ever attempt to sell her work. I was also told she also had long legs. I only hope that I have represented her well.

Titty and her siblings had dark hair, but I was told that Mrs Ransome wanted the children playing the Swallows to have have blonde hair. She insisted that Titty was played by ‘an English Rose.’

Titty with Brigit and Joe,John Sanders, 1953

Titty Altounyan at her sister Brigit’s wedding to John Sanders in 1953

Titty obituary - The Guardian

You can see a couple more family photos on ‘Secret Britain – The Lakes’ has been on BBC iPlayer at about 11.50 minis in. Those in the UK can view the programme here.

(NB: Ransome did not write ‘Swallows and Amazons’ while on holiday on Coniston Water as was stated in the programme. To see a photograph of Low Ludderburn, the house above Windermere where Arthur Ransome lived and wrote ‘Swallows and Amazons’ please click here and scroll down.)

You can read about what it was like to play the part of Able Seaman Titty in the original film of ‘Swallows and Amazons’ in this illustrated paperback, available online or to order from libraries worldwide:

Screenshot of The Making of Swallows and Amazons book cover on Instagram