Arthur Ransome Literary Estate

Arthur Ransome (1884-1967) is best known for his twelve much-loved children’s novels, which have remained in print in hardback and paperback for almost one hundred years since the first, Swallows and Amazons, appeared in 1930. They have been translated into many languages. Before Ransome embarked on writing these books, he wrote The History of Story-Telling (republished by The Arthur Ransome Trust with an introduction by Philip Pullman), two short books about the Russian Revolution (The Crisis in Russia (republished by Faber) and Russia in 1918, accounts of his sailing voyages in the Baltic (Racundra’s First Cruise, Racundra’s Third Cruise), and best-selling books on fishing (Rod and Line, Mainly About Fishing).

The Arthur Ransome Literary Estate’s charitable beneficiary

In his Will, Arthur Ransome bequeathed royalties from the sale of his books and other income from fees and rights, to the Royal Literary Fund (The Royal Literary Fund), one of the UK’s oldest charities. Established in 1790, the RLF supports writers in financial need and every year provides over £5 million in grants, educational support and outreach programmes. The Arthur Ransome Literary Estate is one of the RLF’s principal sources of income.

Copyright and Permissions

Arthur Ransome’s copyrights and the ‘Swallows and Amazons’ trademark belong to the Arthur Ransome Literary Estate.

All of Arthur Ransome’s works are in copyright in the UK until 31 December, 2037. With some exceptions (for example, works published before 1923 in the USA, and countries with 50 year copyright periods) they also remain in copyright overseas.

Enquiries

For permissions or rights enquiries relating to the 12 Swallows and Amazons novels, contact the following publishers:

UK & World (excl USA): Penguin Random House (UK) Ltd
USA: David R Godine

For film, television, musical and theatrical permissions and rights in any of Arthur Ransome’s works contact:

The Agency

Trademark and Other Enquiries

The phrase “Swallows and Amazons” is a registered trademark (UK Trademark No 2219604). For permission to use it and for any other enquiries, contact the Executors of the Arthur Ransome Literary Estate:

Fill in the form below to contact

The Arthur Ransome Society (TARS)

The Arthur Ransome Society was founded in 1990 and has some thousand members of all ages. It offers a lively programme of events and activities across the UK and overseas, such as camping, sailing, guided walks, museum and cultural visits.
Its journal Mixed Moss and its magazine Signals record new research and advertise society events. There is also a magazine The Outlaw for younger members. TARS has a well-stocked members’ library and an interesting archive of Ransome-related artefacts. It organises a biennial Literary Weekend hosting talks about Ransome’s life and writings. Through Amazon Publications its members can obtain new books relating to Ransome.
TARS owns, and makes available for hire to the public, the two dinghies which starred in the 1974 film of Swallows & Amazons.

The Arthur Ransome Club of Japan

The Arthur Ransome Club of Japan was founded in 1987 to celebrate Arthur Ransome.

ARTHUR RANSOME CHARITIES

Arthur Ransome Trust (ART)

ART is a registered charity that exists to help people discover, explore and enjoy Arthur Ransome’s fascinating life and works. It is working towards creating a Ransome Centre in the Lake District using legacies, exhibitions, events, educational materials, and, under licence from the Estate, early Ransome works and ‘Swallows and Amazons’ merchandise. Its online shop supplies these, together with hardback and other editions of Ransome’s 12 children’s novels. Royalties from sales of ART’s licensed books and products support the Royal Literary Fund.

Nancy Blackett Trust (NBT)

Nancy Blackett Trust is a registered charity which owns and preserves Arthur Ransome’s favourite yacht, Nancy Blackett, which appeared lightly disguised as the Goblin in his novels We Didn’t Mean to Go to Sea and Secret Water. Opportunities to sail Nancy are open to NBT members of all ages, as well as to young people via the Trust’s Young Sailors Fund.

Each year many Ransome fans enjoy the experience of sailing Nancy Blackett, and many more visit her at maritime events.

All Things Ransome

All Things Ransome is a research tool for those interested in discovering more about the works and life of Arthur Ransome, and the sources and influences relevant to his work. In particular, the goal is to provide a permanent home for Ransome-related materials, especially for non-ephemeral works such as the literary pages, essays, articles, and the like. All Things Ransome also provides links to other Arthur Ransome resources available on the world wide web.