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Swallows And Amazons
''Swallows and Amazons'' is a children's adventure novel by English author Arthur Ransome and first published on 21 July 1930 by Jonathan Cape. Set in the summer of 1929 in the Lake District, the book introduces the main characters of John, Susan, Titty and Roger Walker (Swallows); as well as their mother, Mary; and their baby sister, Bridget (nicknamed Vicky). We also meet Nancy and Peggy Blackett (Amazons); their uncle Jim (James Turner), commonly referred to as Captain Flint; and their widowed mother, Molly Blackett. It is the first book in the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series, followed by '' Swallowdale''. At the time, Ransome had been working as a journalist with the ''Manchester Guardian'', but decided to become a full-time author rather than go abroad as a foreign correspondent. He did continue to write part-time for the press, however. The book was inspired by a summer spent by Ransome teaching the children of his friends, the Altounyans, to sail. Three of the Altou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arthur Ransome
Arthur Michell Ransome (18 January 1884 – 3 June 1967) was an English author and journalist. He is best known for writing and illustrating the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series of children's books about the school-holiday adventures of children, mostly in the Lake District and the Norfolk Broads. The entire series remains in print, and ''Swallows and Amazons'' is the basis for a tourist industry around Windermere and Coniston Water, the two lakes Ransome adapted as his fictional North Country lake. He also wrote about the literary life of London, and about Russia before, during, and after the revolutions of 1917. His connection with the leaders of the Revolution led to him providing information to the Secret Intelligence Service, while he was also suspected by MI5 of being a Soviet spy. Early life Ransome was the son of Cyril Ransome (1851–1897) and his wife Edith Ransome (née Baker Boulton) (1862–1944). Arthur was the eldest of four children: he had two sisters Cecily ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Corned Beef
Corned beef, or salt beef in some of the Commonwealth of Nations, is Salt-cured meat, salt-cured brisket of beef. The term comes from the treatment of the meat with large-grained rock salt, also called "corns" of salt. Sometimes, sugar and spices are added to corned beef recipes. Corned beef is featured as an ingredient in many cuisines. Most recipes include nitrates, which convert the natural myoglobin in beef to nitrosomyoglobin, giving it a pink color. Nitrates and nitrites reduce the risk of dangerous botulism during Curing (food preservation), curing by inhibiting the growth of ''Clostridium botulinum'' bacteria spores, but have been linked to increased cancer risk in mice. Beef cured without nitrates or nitrites has a gray color, and is sometimes called "New England corned beef". Corned beef was a popular meal throughout numerous wars, including World War I and World War II, during which fresh meat was rationed. It also remains popular worldwide as an ingredient in a va ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bowness-on-Windermere
Bowness-on-Windermere is a town in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England. It lies next to Windermere lake and the town of Windermere to the north east with which it forms the civil parish of Windermere and Bowness. The town was historically part of the county of Westmorland and is also forms an urban area with Windermere. The town had a population of 3,814 in the 2011 Census. Etymology 'Bowness' (originally 'Bulnes') means " 'the headland where the bull grazes', from OE 'bula', 'bull' and OE 'næss' 'headland', perhaps referring to the keeping of the parish bull." The 'on-Windermere' part was added later (found on the Ordnance Survey map of 1899), presumably to distinguish this 'Bowness' from other Cumbrian ones. ('OE' = Old English). History The town's ancient parish church of St Martin was built in 1483 but of an older foundation. The former rectory is said to have been built in 1415. A grammar school was founded in about 1600. A new building was opened in 1836, f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peel Island, Cumbria
Peel Island (formerly known as Montague Island or the Gridiron) is one of the three islands of Coniston Water in the English Lake District, Cumbria. The two others are Fir Island (which is connected to the shore unless the water is particularly high) and Oak Island. It is most famous for being one of the inspirations for Arthur Ransome's Wild Cat Island. Today, it is a popular tourist destination, and belongs to the National Trust. History Peel Island has belonged to the National Trust since it was given to them by John Montagu-Douglas-Scott, 7th Duke of Buccleuch, along with of woodland, in 1932. Wild Cat Island Peel Island is considered to be one of the origins of the fictional Wild Cat Island in the 1930 book ''Swallows and Amazons'' and its sequels, by Arthur Ransome. Taqui Altounyan, sister of Roger Altounyan and inspiration for one of the characters in ''Swallows and Amazons'', described Peel Island in her autobiography ''In Aleppo Once'' as "like a green tuffet, sittin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coniston Water
Coniston Water in the English county of Cumbria is the third-largest lake in the Lake District by volume (after Windermere and Ullswater), and the fifth-largest by area. It is five miles long by half a mile wide (8 km by 800 m), has a maximum depth of 184 feet (56 m), and covers an area of 1.89 square miles (4.9 km2). The lake has an elevation of 143 feet (44 m) above sea level. It drains to the sea via the River Crake. Geography and administration Coniston Water is situated within Furness, part of the North Lonsdale exclave of the historic county of Lancashire. Since 1974, it is within the administrative county of Cumbria. Coniston Water is an example of a ribbon lake formed by glaciation. The lake sits in a deep U-shaped glaciated valley scoured by a glacier in the surrounding volcanic and limestone rocks during the last ice age. To the north-west of the lake rises the Old Man of Coniston, the highest fell in the Coniston Fells group and the highest ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Windermere
Windermere (sometimes tautology (language), tautologically called Windermere Lake to distinguish it from the nearby town of Windermere, Cumbria (town), Windermere) is the largest natural lake in England. More than 11 miles (18 km) in length, and almost 1 mile (1.5 km) at its widest, it is a ribbon lake formed in a glacial trough after the retreat of ice at the start of the current interglacial period. It has been one of the country's most popular places for holidays and summer homes since the arrival of the Kendal and Windermere Railway's branch line in 1847. Forming part of the border between the historic counties of Lancashire and Westmorland, Windermere is today within the administrative county of Cumbria and the Lake District National Park. Etymology The word 'Windermere' is thought to translate as "'Winand or Vinand's lake'... The specific has usually been identified with an Old Swedish personal name 'Vinandr', genitive singular 'Vinandar'"... although "the pers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nancy Blackett
Nancy Blackett is a fictional character in nine of the twelve juvenile novels in Arthur Ransome's ''Swallows and Amazons series'' of books. She acts as captain of the dinghy, ''Amazon'' and usually directing her friends in their various adventures. Nancy apparently has no real-world counterpart as an inspirational source for Ransome but appears to be completely the author's creation. Nancy is sometimes critically viewed as a subversive character for girl readers. The character appeared in a 1963 BBC television adaptation of ''Swallows and Amazons'' as well as in the 1974 and 2016 film adaptations of the book. Role in the series At the opening of the series in ''Swallows and Amazons, '' Nancy is 12 years old and lives with her younger sister Peggy and her widowed mother in a large Lakeland house called Beckfoot. In common with his treatment of many of his other characters, Ransome does not give a detailed description of Nancy, merely describing her as "bigger than John" (Walk ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
BBC Films
BBC Film (formerly BBC Films) is the feature film-making arm of the BBC. It was founded on 18 June 1990, and has produced or co-produced some of the most successful British films of recent years, including ''Truly, Madly, Deeply'', '' Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa'', ''Quartet'', ''Salmon Fishing in the Yemen'', ''Saving Mr. Banks'', ''My Week with Marilyn'', ''Jane Eyre'', '' In the Loop'', ''An Education'', ''StreetDance 3D'', ''Fish Tank'', ''The History Boys'', ''Nativity!'', ''Iris'', ''Notes on a Scandal'', '' Philomena'', ''Stan & Ollie'', '' Man Up'', ''Billy Elliot'' and ''Brooklyn''. BBC Film co-produces around eight films a year, working in partnership with major international and UK distributors. Rose Garnett is Head of BBC Film, responsible for the development and production slate, strategy and business operations. The company was founded in 1990 by David M. Thompson as a wholly owned but independent film-making company, based in offices in Mortimer Street, London. A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joseph Jacobs
Joseph Jacobs (29 August 1854 – 30 January 1916) was an Australian folklorist, translator, literary critic, social scientist, historian and writer of English literature who became a notable collector and publisher of English folklore. Jacobs was born in Sydney to a Jewish family. His work went on to popularize some of the world's best known versions of English fairy tales including "Jack and the Beanstalk", "Goldilocks and the Three Bears", "The Three Little Pigs", " Jack the Giant Killer" and " The History of Tom Thumb". He published his English fairy tale collections: ''English Fairy Tales'' in 1890 and ''More English Fairy Tales'' in 1893 but also went on after and in between both books to publish fairy tales collected from continental Europe as well as Jewish, Celtic and Indian fairytales which made him one of the most popular writers of fairytales for the English language. Jacobs was also an editor for journals and books on the subject of folklore which included editin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Characters In Arthur Ransome Books
This is a listing of characters from the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series of books by Arthur Ransome. The Swallows *John Walker — eldest of the Walker children and Captain of the ''Swallow'' *Susan Walker — Mate of the ''Swallow'' and the cook and domestic organizer *Titty Walker — Able Seaman of the ''Swallow'' and the most imaginative of the Walkers. This name was the nickname of the real life Mavis Altounyan, taken from Joseph Jacobs's children's story ''Titty Mouse and Tatty Mouse''. It has caused titters among generations of children since, causing it to be changed to ''Kitty'' in the original 1963 television series of ''Swallows and Amazons'', and ''Tatty'' for a 2016 BBC Films adaptation (but in the 1974 BBC adaptation she was Titty). *Roger Walker — initially Ship's Boy, later Able Seaman (and Ship's Engineer in '' Great Northern?''), mischievous, mechanical and very fond of chocolate. He is the second-youngest of the children. *Bridget Walker — Ship's Baby wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robinson Crusoe
''Robinson Crusoe'' () is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719. The first edition credited the work's protagonist Robinson Crusoe as its author, leading many readers to believe he was a real person and the book a travelogue of true incidents. Epistolary, confessional, and didactic in form, the book is presented as an autobiography of the title character (whose birth name is Robinson Kreutznaer) – a castaway who spends 28 years on a remote tropical desert island near the coasts of Venezuela and Trinidad, roughly resembling Tobago, encountering cannibals, captives, and mutineers before being rescued. The story has been thought to be based on the life of Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish castaway who lived for four years on a Pacific island called "Más a Tierra" (now part of Chile) which was renamed Robinson Crusoe Island in 1966. Despite its simple narrative style, ''Robinson Crusoe'' was well received in the literary world and is often credited as ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grog
Grog is a term used for a variety of alcoholic beverages. The word originally referred to rum diluted with water (and later on long sea voyages, also added the juice of limes or lemons), which British Vice-Admiral Edward Vernon introduced into the naval squadron he commanded in the West Indies on 21 August 1740. Vernon wore a coat of grogram cloth and was nicknamed ''Old Grogram'' or ''Old Grog''. The ''Merriam–Webster Collegiate Dictionary'', which agrees with this story of the word's origin, states that the word ''grog'' was first used in this sense in 1770, though other sources cite 1749. In modern times, the term ''grog'' has had a variety of meanings in a number of different cultures, but is most commonly used in Australia and New Zealand where it is a slang word for alcohol. Origin and history Background During the early modern period (1500–1800), sailors required significant quantities of fresh water on extended voyages. Since desalinating sea water was not ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
