Peter Pan and

Great Ormond Street

In 1929 J M Barrie donated all his rights to Peter Pan to Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital, London, later confirmed in his will when he died in 1937.  He stipulated that the sum earned by the Hospital from the royalties should never be revealed.

Both Barrie and Peter Pan are commemorated at Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital in various ways.  There is a Peter Pan Ward, a Peter Pan Mural, the archives are stored in the Peter Pan Gallery.  The outpatients’ cafeteria also bears his name and there is a whole wing dedicated to Barrie.

Barrie’s generous gift marked the beginning of a close relationship between Peter Pan and Great Ormond Street, and it became a tradition for the cast of the annual production to visit the Hospital at Christmas to perform the “Nursery Scene” in one of the wards.  Peter Pan soon became a symbol of active and practical help, generating money for the hospital both directly and indirectly.

Throughout its history the Hospital has been fortunate in the generous support it has received from various independent sources.  Listed among its most famous benefactors are royal patrons, from Queen Victoria to the present Queen, Charles Dickens, who raised money to build the first hospital, and of course, Sir James Barrie.

The hospital opened in 1852 with ten beds and has since earned an international reputation for medical excellence.  Today, with over 300 beds and 32 clinical and surgical specialities, Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital offers the widest range of paediatric expertise in Britain.  The Institute of Child Health (ICH), the Hospital’s Research arm, is the largest paediatric research centre in Britain and a leading force in child health research worldwide.

The gift of the copyright to Peter Pan was confirmed in Barrie’s death in 1937.  Fifty years later, in 1987, when copyright expired under British Law, Parliament voted in an amendment to a new act to extend the Hospital’s entitlement to royalties from Peter Pan for as long as the hospital exists.  The play, books, films etc. which have come from Barrie’s creation have benefited the Hospital ever since, raising money all over the world.

Perhaps the author always had Great Ormond Street in mind when he wrote the Peter Pan Story.  It emphasises the joy and happiness of childhood and offers comfort and hope to those who are sick.

If you would like more information about Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, or would like to make a donation, please contact:

Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity 020 7405 9200.

 Dayne Cornelius

Toni Parker

Jordan Butt

Gene Cook

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