A tenant of Anne Lister's with a Brontë connection

Examiner Live reports that a farm owned by Anne Lister is now for sale. One of its tenants had quite a Brontë connection too.

The house, part of the Listers' Shibden Estate, was the home of tenant farmer Samuel Sowden who also appears in the series. He appears in records as a tenant of Anne Lister and her partner Ann Walker, who is played by Sophie Rundle.
In Gentleman Jack Sowden, played by Anthony Flanagan, is a drunken thug who is murdered by his long-suffering son.
But in real life Sowden had great ambitions for his son Sutcliffe who went to Cambridge University, became a vicar and officiated at the marriage of legendary author Charlotte Brontë and Arthur Bell Nicholls in 1854.
The home, which has 16th century origins, is on sale for £1.3m. (Dave Himelfield)

Sutcliffe Sowden was actually Arthur Bell Nicholls's best friend. Arthur found refuge in this very farm when he left Haworth after his first proposal to Charlotte Brontë. Sowden did indeed officiate at Charlotte and Arthur's wedding but, sadly, also at her funeral. Charlotte liked him well enough to try and play matchmaker between him and Ellen Nussey. He also officiated at Patrick Brontë's funeral. He was found drowned in the Rochdale Canal a few months later and then it was Arthur Bell Nicholls's unenviable task to conduct his best friend's funeral.

The Guardian gives 5 stars to the latest film adaptation of Little Women.

Gerwig’s Little Women have a great collective vitality, always puppyishly hugging and crowding around, while getting into scrapes and putting on theatre shows. They have something of the Brontë sisters or even the Dashwood sisters but with a much more rough-and-ready Americanness. (Peter Bradshaw)