Linda Brontë's Egalitrons

Mary Haigh, former Brontë Society Representative in New England, has written to us explaining why and how she has stepped down from her post:

To concentrate more on the book I am writing and illustrating about 'Thomas The Parsonage Cat,' I have decided to resign from my prestigious post of Brontë Society Representative for the New England States; Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.
While attendance of my members was minimal, sometimes nil, at my yearly big events, my gang of pseudo Brontës always rose to the occasion, and we made the Brontë legend fun as Colleges, Museums, Exhibitions, and Theaters welcomed and entertained us.
I turned the post over to Marie Hennedy of Rhode Island and she was delighted to take the lead. She reveres Charlotte's work and most admires her novel, Villette.
Our national Brontë leader is Randall Grimsley, of Tennessee, and he is smitten by the writings of Emily - so am I. He is amazing for making his representatives of the 10 Regions feel special
The text is finished on Thomas The Cat and I am working now to make the illustrations of Thomas and his beloved Haworth a delight for children of all ages.

Bland Hack Pictures (aka Jamie Hawkins-Gaar and Julian Modugno) have released their new short film which brings the Brontës through a whole new frontier... or something like it. Enjoy:

The Other Brontë Sister
As the Brontë sisters debate their family legacy, their fourth sister Linda reveals she has a book that will cement their place in literary history...and the future of the world.

It’s finally here! After seven months of back-breaking work, painstaking editing, and mind-blowing special effects, we’re very proud to unveil what is easily Bland Hack’s most ambitious work to date.
Spanning a thousand years, the skit features four lovely ladies of Twinhead Theatre as the Brontë sisters in what is — let’s face it — the best and most accurate depiction of the literary family yet. And what would a skit about the Brontës be without copious blood and explosions? Take a look!
Of course, Julian and I could never have done this on our own. HUGE thanks and eternal gratitude (and seriously, just complete awe) to Kenneth Uzquiano for his amazing special effects. He completely exceeded any expectations we had about this skit. Thanks Ken!

The Huddersfield Examiner talks about the recently released biography of the artist Ashley Jackson: Ashley Jackson. An Artist's Life by Chris Bond:

Artist Ashley Jackson releases his autobiography
AGED 16, Ashley Jackson said what the Brontë sisters did for Yorkshire with words, he wanted to do with his brush.
Now 70, the Holmfirth-based watercolourist is marking a life in art with the release of his biography: Ashley Jackson: An Artist’s Life. (Kevin Core)

This Webandrank press release is a bit apocalyptic in its description of the influence of the blogs over the evolution of English:

Taught English in Japan and Indonesia and often locked horns with American teachers (I’m British) about the usage of English. It seems that it does matter what type of English you use when it comes to SEO. Also I think there is an argument about the deterioration of the rich tradition in English literature, as we keep making the language in our blogs simpler and replacing old words with new technological ones will Shakespeare and Brontë finally become irrelevant.

Even in a presentation of a book in Nepal the Brontës put in an appearance. We read in República (Nepal):

Durga Lal Shrestha from Sajha Pustak Bhandar congratulates [Tara] Rai on the publishing of her first book and says, "I see huge prospect in her as a writer. I hope she can achieve the literary heights of Emily Brontë and Parijat."(Dikshya Karki)

Gutenberg sells a 1882 edition of Swinburne's Note on Charlotte Brontë; The Art of Reading spotted two Wuthering Heights readers; Les Brontë à Paris translates into French a fragment of Agnes Grey; Brontë Society Council member Stephen Whitehead asks for more opinions in the open debate about Anne Brontë's grave conservation on the Brontë Parsonage Blog. Finally, also on the Brontë Parsonage Blog an interesting post by Maddalena De Leo about the current state of the Branwell family house in Penzance.

It is really a pity to see this famously Brontë-related house so neglected and empty. If sold and bought by a Brontë fan couldn’t it become a sort of Brontë-Branwell museum after the main one at Haworth and a luckier site than the Thornton birthplace? The weather in Cornwall is mild, the landscape beautiful and tourists flock there from all over Europe: according to me it might be a wonderful and rewarding idea to realize and the best way to preserve this far-away Brontë-related treasure!

Categories: Agnes Grey, Anne Brontë, Brontë Society, Brontëana, Humour, Movies-DVD-TV, References