This Saturday sees the 130th Anniversary of Arthur Ransome's birth. Best known for writing the "Swallows and Amazons" series of children's books, he won the inaugural Carnegie medal in 1936 and was made a CBE in 1953. Born in Leeds on 18th January 1884, and an alumnus of Rugby, Ransome was also a foreign correspondent in Russia during the Russian Revolutions, ending up working for the Guardian.

To celebrate the 130th Anniversary of Ransome's birth, a number of special events are being held in the United Kingdom.

The Arthur Ransome Society is holding a number of Birthday Lunches for its members this weekend (18th or 19th) in Arundel, Exeter, Giggleswick, Glasgow, High Wycombe, and Shotley Gate. The Northern Region lunch will include a cake with 'Happy 130th Birthday, Arthur' on it, plus a secret message in the manner of "Winter Holiday".

Some of those lunches include talks by special guests. At Arundel, Les Powles talks about sailing hree times around the world single-handed. In Exeter, Captain Colin Darch will give a talk about being "Captured by Somali Pirates", while the Shotley Gate lunch sees Sophie Neville revealing some of "The Secrets of Filming Swallows and Amazons".

Meanwhile, in the Lake District, the Theatre by the Lake in Keswick sees a special pirate costume competition for the last night of their winter run of the musical "Swallows and Amazons", originally adapted for the stage by Helen Edmundson, with songs by Neil Hannon and premiered to national acclaim in 2010. The Theatre has also been hosting the "Voyage of Discovery" exhibition in its foyer, produced by the Arthur Ransome Trust.