Barrie James Matthew - Kirriemuir, 9 maggio 1860, Londra, 19 giugno 1937; was a Scottish novelist and playwright, best known for creating the iconic character Peter Pan. Born in Kirriemuir, Scotland, Barrie was the ninth of ten children in a conservative Calvinist family. His early life was marked by the death of his older brother David, which deeply influenced his work, particularly themes of lost childhood and innocence.

Barrie moved to London in 1885 to pursue a career in writing, and his early works included novels and plays that captured rural Scottish life. His most enduring work, Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up, debuted as a play in 1904 and was later adapted into a novel in 1911, titled Peter and Wendy. This tale of a boy who refuses to grow up, his adventures in Neverland, and the characters of Wendy, Tinker Bell, and Captain Hook, has become a cultural touchstone.

Barrie was also known for his close relationships with the Llewelyn Davies family, whose five boys inspired much of Peter Pan. Though his attachment to the family was controversial, it was central to his life and work.

In 1922, Barrie was made a baronet, and in 1928, he donated the rights to Peter Pan to the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children in London, ensuring a lasting legacy for the work. He passed away in 1937 at the age of 77.