Path to the Bronte Parsonage Museum
If you are a fan of Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre novels and films…read on. There are scarce authors’ homes — where famous and lasting novels were written – so well preserved today as that of the Bronte Parsonage Museum. (If you think the stone building in the above photo is lovely, your breath will be taken away when you visit The Brontë Parsonage Museum! Just follow the winding path in the village of Haworth in Yorkshire past the Old White Lion inn, the church and beyond until you come to the Parsonage. Beware…the museum — once the childhood home of Charlotte and her brother and sisters — faces Haworth’s cemetery and church).
Bronte Parsonage Museum (rear view), Haworth, Yorkshire
FLASH THIS!
A rare chance to visit the real ‘Wuthering Heights’ for the Helen’s Heritage Walks walkers in Yorkshire. http://ow.ly/iuvG9
Boy George to headline Yorkshire Festival in 2013. There will be more than 100 festival venues throughout Yorkshire in 2013. Club Coastival, in the Scarborough Spa, headlines Boy George as part of the exciting weekend of music, arts and family fun. Some of the venues include: Three Peaks Race to the Leeds Waterfront Festival and the Grassington Festival to the Ilkley literature Festival; North Yorkshire: Harrogate Flower Show, Staithes Festival of Arts and Heritage, Tastes of Yorkshire (Ripon), Settle Storytelling Festival; South Yorkshire: St Leger and Cliffhanger; East Yorkshire: Beverley Folk Festival, Burton Agnes Jazz and Blues Festival and the UK Windsurfing Championships at Bridlington; West Yorkshire: Huddersfield Literature Festival, Wakefield Rhubarb Festival, Bradford International Film Festival, and Marsden Cuckoo Festival. Yorkshire’s festival website will launch March 1, 2013. www.yorkshire.com/festivals
Charlotte Brontë
Copyright © by May Georgina DeLory
Yorkshire, England – a windswept storybook landscape, the sort of place where one expects any moment to see Heathcliff and Catherine hand-in-hand coming over the moors. The West Yorkshire moors after all are Bronte Country. The area is made for hiking, taking long walks in incredibly clean air, and riding horse. There’s something to be said for getting in shape and dropping a few pounds just walking in the countryside. I believe the trick is the incredibly clean air and slightly hilly landscape. And, of course, the excitement of a new place and people to rev up the system.
- You’ll find the childhood home of writers Charlotte, Emily and Anne Brontë and their brother Branwell Brontë, now a museum in the village of Haworth, Yorkshire. The Bronte museum is just down the path from the church in Haworth. It may not be the ”yellow brick road” but you’ll soon see the Bronte Parsonage Museum is a step back into a young girl’s imagination. Charlotte moved to the parsonage when she was three-years-old; she was dead at age thirty-eight along with her unborn child and remembered as one of English literature’s finest novelists.
The third child of six, Charlotte was born in 1816. Two older sisters, Maria and Elizabeth died of tuberculosis when Charlotte was eight-years-old. Charlotte’s mother, Maria Branwell, died of cancer when Charlotte was five. The Bronte family first lived in the tiny village of Thornton, a few miles from Haworth. One by one the sisters as well as their brother died in early adulthood from disease. But the years in Haworth leading up to the tragic end were fodder for the Bronte legend and for the inspiration to write books still devoured to this day.
Room With A View / Old White Lion Inn, Haworth
Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte’s 1847 classic tale of love, loss, and triumph, has seen many film versions, including one in 1944 with Orson Welles. Australian Mia Wasikowska as Jane in Moira Buffini’s adaptation of “Jane Eyre” debuts March 2011, directed by Cary Fukunaga. Michael Fassbender (Hunger) plays brooding Mr. Rochester; Dame Judi Dench (NINE; Madame de Sade; “M” in the current James Bond series) plays Mrs. Fairfax, Rochester’s housekeeper; Jamie Bell plays St. John the missionary, and Sally Hawkins (Happy-Go-Lucky) plays Jane’s cruel aunt, Mrs. Reed. The latest cinematic adaptation of the Bronte novel is a BBC collaboration with Focus Films.
What’s fascinating today about the village of Haworth, is that not much has changed since the Brontes lived there behind the church where their father, Patrick Bronte, was clergy. The apothecary–where Branwell got his drug fix that contributed to his death – is still just down the street from the 300-year-old White Lion inn on Main street, the church, the graveyard bearing headstones of those who suffered the deeds of a difficult life in Haworth, the Parsonage, and the moors and its heather. Top Withens, too, although almost lost to the ground, stands, overlooking the moors, testament to the Bronte sisters’ imagination.
Father Bronte had seen meagre times in Ireland growing up on a farm. By the time he was a young man Patrick Bronte had opened his own school, entered the church and attended Cambridge University. The thirst for achievement and education were handed down to the Bronte children.
Heather on the moors
Haworth Old Hall Pub, Haworth
The moors above Haworth became the Bronte sisters imaginative playground; and – especially so for Charlotte — their Haworth home the site of private class in the instruction of painting and drawing, music and reading. Outside the walls of their simple home was much sickness and wretched living conditions. Is it any wonder then, that the sisters set their soul free on the page.
FYI
Exciting “slow food” local cuisine. I love it when the chef pops out back of the kitchen to gather a few fresh herbs for my meal. Wonderful inns, pubs, restaurants, cafes and tea houses are to be had in the cobbled streets of Haworth.
- I’m a sucker for sticky toffee pudding; a British steamed dessert which is a dense and very moist cake made with fine chopped dates or prunes and smothered in a warm toffee sauce. Custard or thick whipped cream or ice cream on the side if you like and I like. The more the merrier. I ate my heart out all across Yorkshire, England with sticky puddings. The one I liked best was served at the Old White Lion Inn…a family operated, 4-star, 300-year-old coaching inn in the tiny village of Haworth, Yorkshire. The pudding was a dense, luscious and very dark moist cake tasting of cloves, cinnamon, vanilla and who knows what else…very much like a spice cake. The mounds of warm toffee sauce and thick whipped local cream on top left me in heaven. In some places the chef used one spice predominately over another for the sticky pudding…but all the sticky puddings were satisfying, as were the simple pork pies encased in thick pastry I had in the city of York.
The Kings Arms of Haworth, Yorkshire
Places to see, things to do, and spots to fill the tummy when you visit Haworth
Haworth is a delightful village with everything close at hand from pastry shops to quaint book stores. To see the beauty of Bronte Country there’s nothing like walking the Yorkshire moors or riding horse. If travelling from Leeds, Bradford or Skipton, take the Keighley railway to Haworth. It’s about a five-minute cab ride from the train station into the village of Haworth. Each fall there is the Worth Valley Beer & Music Festival ( September 25 – 28, 2012) where over 140 real ales, foreign bottle beers, ciders and perrys are available. Join the beer party on a steam locomotive as you travel through Yorkshire countryside. Steam Train Gala, October 12 - 14, 2012. Also new tours for 2012 to see the famous Haworth Motive Power Depot at Haworth. The Northern Rail station is adjacent to The Keighley & Worth Valley Railway Station at Keighley station (Haworth). Make connections to London, England (about a 2.5 hr. trip). http://www.kwvr.co.uk/guided-tours.html Don’t forget the Haworth Haddock fish and chips vintage train throughout the spring, summer and fall in 2012. Email reservations: ( fishandchips@kwvr.co.uk). http://www.kwvr.co.uk/fishandchipspecials.html www.kwvr.co.uk
For further information, vacation-planning advice and access to passes and transport tickets and information on visiting cities close to Haworth please go to: www.yorkshire.com You may also wish to visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/yorkshire or call 01904 702021 or visit the twitter account for the Bronte museum: @bronteparsonage
Andrew McCarthy, Director, Bronte Parsonage Museum, Haworth, Yorkshire, England, appeals to keep a National Treasure at home in Haworth. Charlotte Bronte manuscript in private hands to fetch between £200,000 – £300,000 at auction by Sothebys in London on Thursday 15 December, 2011. http://bit.ly/txCb3C
www.yorkshire.com The Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter) filmed in Yorkshire Dales National Park.
www.yorkshire.com/michelinstarexperience 
http://www.hawortholdhall.co.uk/ Haworth restaurant and pub with patio.
www.grouse-inn.co.uk Oldfield, Keighley in Yorkshire, England
www.oldwhitelionhotel.com Famous ales to be had in Haworth, Yorkshire
www.thekingsarmshaworth.com Village of Haworth, Yorkshire (almost secret laneway entrance to the famous “Bronte” church.
Fine dining to send shivers up your spine. Weavers Restaurant, 15 West Lane, Haworth, Yorkshire (the famous Bronte sisters lived and wrote their novels in Haworth — Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights & other books) expects a full house of bookings each December 19th as guests wait for the “Grey Lady” apparition to appear on the anniversary of Emily Bronte’s death. Some say other ghosts are present at Weavers. All I know is when I dined at Weaver’s (i had not heard of the ”Grey Lady”) I burst into tears for no apparent reason. Shaken and embarrassed…I read of the anniversary a couple of days’ afterward. www.weaversmallhotel.co.uk
The Yorke Arms / Restaurant with Rooms
Yorke Arms is one of Britain’s leading restaurants. The Michelin-starred dining room is presided over by one of the world’s top female chefs, Frances Atkins. Expect an elegant dark-wood and lead-windows ambiance on manicured lawns. The Yorke Arms offers fresh vegetables and herbs from its gardens, local game, and high quality seafood. Nidderdale lamb pie with beignet of Yorkshire blue cheese is a speciality. The stone walled garden seems straight out of the film the “Secret Garden”.
Yorke Arms, Harrogate, Yorkshire
www.yorke-arms.co.uk Michelin-starred dining and manor house accommodation within easy driving distance from Haworth.
www.visityork.org City of York where you’ll find York Minster cathedral and many other historic venues, quaint food shops and tea houses.
www.grangehotel.co.uk Medieval city of York. The Grange Hotel was built in 1834 as private residence for a York ecclesiastical family. Converted into a AA 4-star hotel in 1990 by Jeremy and Vivien Cassel the hotel’s owners. Ten-minutes’ walk to York Minster cathedral and other historic venues. Very cool pub.
www.yorkfoodfestival.com City of York, Yorkshire (two.5 hours’ high speed train from London).
www.yorkfestivaloffoodanddrink.com Largest annual food/drink festival in the UK. September 21 – 30, 2012.
Yorkshire Museum has been selected this year for Letting in the Light – Revitalising the Yorkshire Museum for the 21st century. Members of the public are invited to vote online at www.artfundprize.org.uk for their favourite long-listed museum. www.nationaltrust.org.uk/yorkshire
The Hidden Minster: a jewel in the crown for the city of York: York Minster, in the sophisticated city of York, is known the world over as a magnificent example of religious architecture. Now you can see behind the curtains of the famous cathedral and peek through historic stained glass windows while restoration takes place. You will not get an opportunity like this ever again. New Exhibition coming to York Minster Cathedral in York for Autumn 2012…. ‘Stories in Glass and Stone’. New interactive galleries will reveal the astonishing secrets behind York Minster’s Great East Window. Unprecedented in its time and still the largest stained-glass window in Europe, the window told the epic story of the ‘beginning and end of all things’. Opening ceremony of York Minster’s Orb October 2012 with tours continuing into 2013. http://wp.me/pDQWN-1R7 www.visityork.com www.yorkminster.org
Bedern Glaziers’ Studio Tours at York Minster cathedral every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 2pm, £7.50 per person. Reservations highly suggested as this is a popular tour. Pre-booked groups only at other times throughout the year. Tel: 0844 939 0011 or email groups@yorkminster.org http://www.yorkminster.org/visiting/
http://www.jorvik-viking-centre.co.uk/ Famous Viking Museum in the city of York, UK. The city of York is 2.5-hours’ by rail from the city of London.
www.nationalrail.co.uk telephone 08457 484950
http://www.visitbradford.com/bronte_country/
http://www.yorkshire.com/features/2010/february/bronte-walk
Weird rock formations in North Yorkshire make for a very weird and wonderful hike. Brimhamrocks was used as a film location for film adaptations of Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights Bronte novels. http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/brimhamrocks/
Travel through Scotland, Wales and England by rail. Move up to First Class for 2013. Book by August 31, 2012. Complete your booking, please email Info@acprail.com or call 1-866-938-7245 (toll free for Canada and USA). Telephone: 1-866-BRITRAIL The attractive range of BritRail Pass products – which are not available in the UK - can be purchased from ACP Rail International, BritRail’s exclusive global distributor – www.acprail.com or 1 866 BRITRAIL – Value is the ticket with BritRail’s range of Passes – the most convenient and economical way to explore England and Britain where the rail network — with over 19,000 daily train departures — allows access to 2,500 fascinating destinations in England, Scotland and Wales.
Haworth village
Haworth, Yorkshire
Of course to eat well we must honour those kindly souls who tend the good earth. His Royal Highness Prince Charles The Prince Of Wales offers common sense gardening practises learnt over the course of his lifetime as well as his views on the environment, architecture, education, healthcare, science, business, economics, and the way Nature behaves and the limits of her benevolence throughout time. The Prince of Wales cautions that we should listen carefully to the principles of harmony both in ourselves and in Nature. You may like to read “Harmony: A New way Of Looking At Our World” with Tony Juniper and Ian Skelly. www.harpercollins.com
http://www.millsandboon.co.uk/books/Modern/The-Forbidden-Innocent-.htm Modern take on Jane Eyre by Sharon Kendrick
Read the book Jane Eyre. http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780307744227
http://www.zoomermag.com/travel/finding-the-brontes/34221
http://fb.me/BBuHkUjb Elle Canada interview with Jane Eyre director.
www.thisislondon.co.uk Oscar-winning British actresses Vanessa Redgrave, Tilda Swinton and Rachel Weisz are going head-to-head for best actress glory in the 39th London Evening Standard British Film Awards. Information courtesy of Jane Eyre Facebook page.
Congratulations to Jane Eyre screenwriter Moira Buffini for being named one of five finalists for the USC Libraries Scripter Award, honoring the year’s most accomplished cinematic adaptation as well as the authors of the written work on which the screenplay is based! Read more about the Scripter Award nominees here. Information courtesty of Jane Eyre Facebook page. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/movies/usc-scripter-award/
BAFTA has recognized Jane Eyre on its’ longlist in 8 categories including Leading Actress, Costume Design, and Cinematography. Check below for the complete list of votes. Baftas 2012 longlist www.guardian.co.uk Information courtesy of Jane Eyre Facebook page.
The Yorkshire Moors in late summer turns an artist’s pallet of the colour purple. Yorkshire makes for the perfect scenic walking adventure. Afterwards enjoy a visit to one of the local high quality tea houses, pubs, or farmers’ markets. I visited the annual York Festival of Food and Drink in September in the medieval city of York; I highly suggest a visit here for locally grown and sourced foods. September 21 to 30, 2012 www.yorkfoodfestival.com
Another travel award for Yorkshire as the winner of the World Travel Award for the World’s Leading Marketing Campaign. Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “The award is testament to the 25,000 brilliant businesses that make up Yorkshire’s tourism industry; their quality ensures we are able to compete on a global scale with the best in the world. It also shows how far we have come in three years since Welcome to Yorkshire launched, that we now judge ourselves against the world’s best and not just our competitors in the UK.”
Yorkshire…. Only 2 hours from London, the atmosphere in Yorkshire as the 2012 Games unfold will be unrivaled anywhere else in the UK. For free Y magazine visit: www.yorkshire.com www.eastcoast.co.uk www.nationalrail.co.uk www.acprail.com (Toll Free in Canada: 1-866-938-7245.)
Royal Events in Yorkshire http://t.co/bgpbOKW via twitter.com @welcome2yorks
Much is taking place in the historic city of York, Yorkshire in 2012! Special events and festivals are scheculed throughout the 2012 year, including the legendary York Cycle of Mystery Plays being staged in the Museum Gardens throughout August for the first time since the 1980s, a new Medieval summer festival and Britain’s biggest celebration of all things rail-related at the National Railway Museum, and the Olympic Torch arrives in the city of York in June, 2012. Charter Weekend will take place 7-9 July, 2012 and as part of the York 800 celebration hundreds of choir singers in the city will come together to form a huge community choir called Ebor Vox. Performances will include a new piece specially composed for York800 by acclaimed composer Benjamin Till – creator of the BBC’s 2010 Symphony for Yorkshire. Performances take place along the River Ouse, as part of the flotilla of hundreds of boats on Saturday 7 July, and at the Eye of York on the evening of Monday 9 July. Choirs will spring up in shops, cafes, and streets over Charter Weekend (7-9 July). (Dates suppled by Visit York Tourism.)
Original Ghost Walk of York, England. Tour begins by the river after nightfall. http://www.theoriginalghostwalkofyork.co.uk/
Ghost Hunt in the city of York, England. Tour begins in The Shambles, York, England. The Shambles block of 14th century streets and laneways in York used to be the city of York’s open air slaughterhouse. The cobble streets ran fresh with blood and animal innards. The slaughterhouses may be gone replaced by attractive shops; but, some say spirits remain to this day. http://www.ghosthunt.co.uk/
English Heritage attractions and activities in Yorkshire and all over England. The Yorkshire countryside is a haven for ghostly encounters. Check out Clifford’s Tower in the city of York for the grimmer side of Yorkshire’s past. www.english-heritage.org.uk/
Explore Yorkshire’s moors and valleys on Britain’s best loved leisure trains on lovingly preserved vintage rolling stock and historic steam locomotives. Some of these trains include North Yorkshire Moors Railway, Keighley & Worth Valley Railway, Middleton Railway and many more. Visit www.yorkshire.com www.kwvr.co.uk
Haworth Haddock Festival Hand-pulled real ale, fish and chips train, restored stations, fall beer train festival and more! Due to this popular fish and chips train another date has been added towards the end of September 2012. Check for current festivals. Keighley & Worth Valley Railway Preservation Society, Haworth, West Yorkshire. Travel by train from London, England. www.britrail.com www.kwvr.co.uk http://ow.ly/dhtBn
New for 2012! Haworth, Yorkshire. If you enjoyed the film “The Railway Children” you’ll be interested in taking a tour of the famous Haworth Motive Power Depot. Tours Sat/Sunday and midweek. Ask abou the newly released book on the making of The Railway Children.
World renowned riding schools registered with the British Horse Society make Yorkshire home. www.bhs.org.uk for a list of approved riding schools for sport and leisure. From small ponies for the children to horses for adults. Horse racing info: www.goracing.co.uk Go Racing Summer Festival, July 21 – 29, 2012. http://www.goracing.co.uk/yr_festival.htm
Find out where the London 2012 Games Torch Relay will travel. http://www.yorkshire.com/olympics/torch-relay-map
London 2012 Olympic Heroes Map can be found at www.yorkshire.com
For information on Art on the Underground see http://art.tfl.gov.uk
Copyright by May DeLory
Su Blackwell graduated from the Royal College of Art in 2003; she has exhibited internationally, including The Scottish Gallery in Edinburgh; Museum of Art and Design in New York and many other museum venues. Blackwell created book-cut sculptures in three-dimensional illustrations to honour the Bronte Parsonage Museum collection. “Remnants” was on display in the Bronte museum in the fall of 2010. Visit www.bronte.info for details of current exhibitions at the museum. (In Haworth village you’ll find two wonderful shops selling linens and lace. Across the street from The Old Lion Inn on Main Street).
If you are visiting London and intend to use the Tube and other forms of public transport, you can buy a Visitor Oyster Card, delivered to you before you travel. Start using it from the moment you land in London, avoiding queues at the airport to buy tickets. The Visitor Oyster Card calculates the cheapest fare for your journey. You can purchase a Visitor Oyster Card before your trip to Britain at the VisitBritain shop www.visitbritainshop.com
Yorkshire — Not just another whistle stop! You can get to Yorkshire by high-speed train from London or Edinburgh in less than two-hours! www.acprail.com
FYI Brontë
Brontë Society events take place throughout the year. A Contemporary Arts Programme also takes place at the Brontë Parsonage Museum. To join our mailing list for events information please contact bronte@bronte.org.uk/ 01535 642323. To download the current programme click here
Saturday 23 March 2013
Literary Houses: An accessible study day exploring the concept of houses in literature, from Thornfield Hall to Manderley – Tickets £20 – 10am to 3pm – West Lane Baptist Centre, Haworth – Bookings: jenna.holmes@bronte.org.uk / 01535 640188.
Friday 19 April 2013
An evening of words and music with Patti Smith and Tony Shanahan: Patti Smith plays Haworth for one evening only in support of the Museum – 8pm – The Old Schoolroom, Haworth – Tickets £25 from jenna.holmes@bronte.org.uk / 01535 640188. SOLD OUT.
Lestyn Davies
Celebrated in 2013 is the 450th anniversary of the birth of the English composer John Dowland. The city of York offers a celebrity series of events involving countertenor Iestyn Davies; lutenists Thomas Dunford, Jakob Lindberg and Elizabeth Kenny; the Rose Consort of Viols and American virtuoso lutenist Paul O’Dette (Sat 6 – Sun 7 July). Twitter account: @VisitYork
York Early Music Festival 2013 (Friday 5 – Saturday 13 July)
The Eternal City
The 2013 York Early Music Festival (5 – 13 July) focuses on the unrivalled musical heritage of Rome – The Eternal City – from the time of the medieval Popes, through the Renaissance polyphony of Palestrina, to the exuberant baroque of Handel. Central to this theme is the 300th anniversary of the iconic Italian composer and violinist Arcangelo Corelli who devoted his entire career to Rome and became a pivotal figure in the development of classical music. Guest artists in the 2013 Festival include three ensembles led by some of Italy’s present day superstars – Riccardo Minasi (Musica Antiqua Roma); Fabio Bonizzoni (La Risonanza) and Patrizia Bovi (Ensemble Medusa).
www.bronte-country.com Events in and around Haworth.
Bronte Relics: A Collection History: New exhibition looking at the fascinating history of the Bronte Parsonage Museum collection, a story almost as extraordinary as the Bronte story itself – Bronte Parsonage Museum – Daily – Free with admission to the museum.
Photos copyright by May Georgina DeLory
Photo of Sticky Pudding with lemon custard courtesy of www.VisitEngland.com
Jane Eyre theatrical release poster courtesy of Focus Features
Michael Fassbender photo (W Magazine) courtesy of Jane Eyre’s Facebook page.
Copyright © May DeLory. All rights reserved. For use of images or content on this blog please contact May DeLory
