The Dark Origins of the Boy Who Never Grew Up: Peter Pan

Don’t Tell Anyone!

The letter reads, “I wish I could be with you and your candles. You can look on me as one of your candles, the one that burns badly – the greasy one that is bent in the middle, But still, hurray, I am Michael’s candle. I wish I could see you putting on the redskin clothes for the first time… Dear Michael, I am very fond of you, but don’t tell anybody.”

Photo by Associated Newspapers / Shutterstock

Barrie wants to watch him put on his clothes and tells Michael how he feels about him, but not to tell anyone. If that’s not damning evidence, I don’t know what is. Reading this letter is extremely uncomfortable, and if a letter like this was found nowadays, there would definitely be an investigation into the writer.

I’m Your Guardian Now

Sadly, Arthur died of jaw cancer in 1907, and Sylvia died of lung cancer in 1910. Guess who the legal guardian was over the Davies boys? Uncle Jim, of course. Before she passed, Sylvia left behind a handwritten letter, saying, “What I would like would be if Jenny would come to Mary & that the two together would be looking after the boys & the house.”

The statue of Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens, 1952.

Photo by George Little / Associated Newspapers / Shutterstock

Mary was the boys’ nanny, and Jenny was Mary’s sister. She didn’t seem to want to leave Barrie with her boys; otherwise, she probably would have mentioned it in the letter. However, Barrie transcribed the will and changed “Jenny” to “Jimmy” before sending it to the Davies’ maternal grandmother. That way, it looked like Sylvia wanted him to be their guardian.

The Davies Kids Growing Up

Barrie managed to fool everyone and became their legal guardian. Although this whole situation seems bizarre and illegal, it should be noted that there is no hard evidence proving that Barrie ever physically abused any of the children. Sadly, in 1915, George Davies was killed in World War I. George was the eldest of the brothers, and after he passed, Barrie and Michael’s relationship grew closer.

Nico in his father Arthur’s arm with Jack, Peter, George, and Michael in 1905.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

But then Michael left home to attend Eton College and had a difficult time adjusting. He was antisocial and troubled but became good friends with Rupert Buxton, the son of a famed baronet. Reportedly, the two friends were inseparable, spending time together in school and on holidays.

Michael’s Tragic Fate

Unfortunately, Michael’s fate wasn’t much different from George’s. He and Buxton drowned together in Standford Pool, a large body of water not far from Oxford. It has been reported that the bodies were found clinging to each other. There aren’t many details surrounding the deaths, but some theories suggest that Davies and Buxton were lovers, and this was a suicide pact.

Michael Llewelyn Davies in the early 1900s as a young boy.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

In later interviews, Michael’s younger brothers Peter and Nico said that suicide is a likely possibility. Unfortunately, we will never know for sure. Several years later, Peter became a successful publisher and seemed to be doing well for himself. But he destroyed all the letters between Michael and Peter. He hated that his name was associated with Peter Pan.

Peter Davies Hates Peter Pan

Peter reportedly called the character “that terrible masterpiece.” His son Ruthven and various other people believe that Peter was driven to become an alcoholic by all this unwanted fame and attention. Peter was the brother who appeared to be positive and successful, but sadly, he threw himself under a subway train in London in April 1960.

Source: neverpedia.com

Barrie, on the other hand, died in 1937 of pneumonia. He generously gave the rights to all his Peter Pan works to the Great Ormond Street Hospital, a children’s hospital. To this day, the hospital continues to greatly benefit from owning the rights.