Beatrix Potter - Her Life

Subsequent Events

In her will, Potter left almost all of her property to the National Trust — 4,000 acres (16 km²) of land, cottages, and 15 farms. The legacy has helped ensure that the beauty of the Lake District and the practice of fell farming remain unspoiled to this day. Her properties now lie within the Lake District National Park.

1971 saw the release of The Tales of Beatrix Potter directed by Reginald Mills. Several of the Tales were set to music and danced by the members of The Royal Ballet including Frederick Ashton who was also the choreographer. The Tale of Pigling Bland was turned into a musical theatrical production by Suzy Conn and was first performed on 6 July 2006 at the Toronto Fringe Festival in Toronto, Canada.

In 1982 the BBC produced The Tale of Beatrix Potter. This dramatization of her life was written by John Hawkesworth and directed by Bill Hayes. It starred Holly Aird and Penelope Wilton as the young and adult Beatrix respectively. The modern author Susan Wittig Albert publishes a series of mysteries featuring a fictionalized Beatrix Potter, focusing on the period of her life between her fiancé’s death and her eventual establishment as a farmer in Sawrey, Cumbria. In December 2006 Penguin Books published Beatrix Potter: A Life in Nature, a new biography by Linda Lear, which emphasizes Potter’s scientific accomplishments both as a botanical artist and as an amateur mycologist.

Miss Potter, a biographical film starring Renée Zellweger, was released on 29 December 2006. The character of Norman Warne was played by Ewan McGregor, while that of William Heelis was played by Lloyd Owen.

Her Life - Introduction

Scientific Aspirations

Literary career

Lake District

Subsequent Events