What happened today 96 years ago?
A statue of Peter Pan appeared "mysteriously" in Kensington Gardens. Barrie commissioned and paid Sir George Frampton to make it. The public did not know that the statue would be coming. It had been installed during the night so that it would surprise people. Barrie wanted it to seem as if it had been put there by the fairies who live in the Gardens.
Barrie also wanted Frampton to use the photographs he took of Michael Davies dressed as Pan as a model/basis. Sadly, though, Frampton ignored his suggestions. As a result, Barrie hated the statue. He said that it did not “show the devil in Peter.” I’ll have to agree with Barrie. It’s a cool statue, but as for it “being” Peter Pan, I will have to say “No.” Just one of Barrie’s disappointments in life regarding his famed creation.
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1 comment:
Ok, you're going to hate this but I love this statue... Every time (but once) I go to London I always stop by Kensington Gardens and pay a visit to it (and sometimes to the bench from Finding Neverland as well). I know it's not what JM Barrie wanted, but it's still beautiful and magical...
Oh and it appears in Spielberg's Hook (well, a copy of it appears in it) and since that movie was my first ever trip to Neverland, it has a special place in my heart.
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