Heathcliff-esque crushes

Variety reports a tiny tidbit on Ellen Page's Jane Eyre in an article discussing the state of BBC Films and their presence in Cannes.

With Mel Gibson set to star in “Edge of Darkness” and Ellen Page attached to “Jane Eyre,” BBC Films has arrived at Cannes in much healthier shape than many feared this time last year, when news broke of a major restructuring at the movie arm of the U.K. pubcaster. [...]
“The powers that be see BBC Films as very distinct,” Langan insists, rejecting the suggestion that its editorial agenda has become “more televisual than filmic.” She cites the “Jane Eyre” project with Page and Ruby Films as evidence. The BBC made a fresh TV version of Charlotte Bronte’s classic novel last year, and Langan said, “If we were TV-minded, we wouldn’t be doing ‘Jane Eyre’ again so quickly.” (Adam Dawtrey)

We don't really see where Langan is getting at, but - uh - okay.

Something altogether different but currently in the news like mad are many Brontë horses. Today both RTÉ Sport and Sporting Life tell the exploits of Charlotte Brontë the horse (that will always sound weird), and The Dominion Post talks about a mare called Wuthering Heights.

Some of those recurring but never less weird mentions are the ones mixing politics and the Brontës. Gordon Brown's 'Heathcliff-ness' is old news, though. From The Times:

During Gordon's past few months of misery and failure it has been hard to remember that, just a few short years ago, many women had a Heathcliff-esque crush on him. They dreamt of making that rogue lock of hair hang across his sweating forehead as he became their Chancellor of the Sexchequer. (Caitlin Moran)

We expect those women are now locked up in some attic, just to continue speaking in Brontë terms.

The Brighouse Echo brings us back to something a little more along the lines we are used to.

Pupils from Bradley Junior School near Huddersfield have been unearthing buried secrets at an historic country house in West Yorkshire.
They were given the opportunity to take part in a three-day archaeological investigation, organised by West Yorkshire Archae-ology Advisory Service and Kirklees Museums and Galleries, at Oakwell Hall near Birstall. The present house, which features in Charlotte Bronte's 'Shirley' as 'Fieldhead', was built in 1583 but the site has a history dating back to medieval times.
Graham Hebblethwaite, chief officer of West Yorkshire Joint Services, said: "Practical activities provide the best way of getting children interested in history. Working on archaeological projects gives them a feel for the past that cannot be provided in any other way – they are literally being put in touch with the past."

According to The Telegraph, Kate Bush is the second best British songwriter.

2 Kate Bush
There may be a stampede of young talented female singer songwriters rushing into the charts, but none has quite created the sensation that the 19-year-old Bush did when she burst onto the pop scene in 1978 with her wild mane and interpretive dancing. She turned the most passionate English novel, Wuthering Heights, into an ardent song, and it made her the first woman to have a UK number one with a self-written number. Bush continued to explore new frontiers, building a lasting body of work. (Chris Harvey)

Give Emily Brontë some credit too, won't you? :P

And fresh from the blogosphere: Little House on the Culdesac, Wild Mountain and Effacé Mémoire all have discovered good things in Jane Eyre. Much Madness is Divinest Sense briefly discusses Emily Brontë and her novel. And the brand-new blog A Chainless Soul pauses to think what might be the cause of Anne's lack of popularity among the masses.

Daphne by Justine Picardie is still alive and well on the blogosphere, as this review on The Dewey Divas and the Dudes shows.

Categories: Anne Brontë, Jane Eyre, Movies-DVD-TV, Music, Weirdo, Wuthering Heights