Campaigners who fought to save Gomersal’s historic Red House say they are “open-minded” about a decision to turn it into a short-term holiday destination and intimate wedding venue.The former Red House Museum, which has connections to Charlotte Brontë, was closed by Kirklees Council in 2016 as part of a reaction to Government austerity cuts.There then followed a lengthy campaign by the Red House Heritage Group to take on the site and develop it as a heritage resource.The council turned down three asset transfer requests and announced in September 2019 that the building and grounds were to be put on the market.The Red House Heritage Group wanted the site turned over to them.Last week the council revealed that the Grade II* listed 19th century manor house to be comprehensively refurbished to become a five-star high-end luxury holiday home for commercial holiday letting.There will also be a room for weddings.Reacting to the news, Red House Heritage Group said its priority remains that the site “is respected and protected in public or community hands”.A spokeswomen said: “We recognise that for this to happen, there must be an appropriate, sympathetic and financially viable use for the site, so while we certainly welcome the investment, we remain open-minded about the council’s new approach.”As well as the main house the site’s cart shed will be remodelled and refitted to provide four individual self-contained holiday apartments.The barn is not included in the commercial proposal and remains a community asset.The group, which has been granted charitable status and will now be known as Red House Yorkshire Heritage Trust, said it has been assured that there is a commitment to ensuring the local community can also access Red House over a number of open weekends and specially-curated events throughout the year, “which pay homage to its outstanding heritage credentials”.The group added: “The council have also assured us that as the barn will not be a part of the new commercial activity there could be scope for community and heritage activities to be based there in the future.”With its connections to Charlotte Brontë , who stayed at Red House and renamed it ‘Briarmains’ in her 1849 novel Shirley, the site is expected to have broad appeal.Red House Museum, which explained the history of Gomersal’s intrepid feminist and author, Mary Taylor, and her friendship with Charlotte Brontë, was one of two venues closed by Kirklees Council in December 2016 amid budget cuts. (Tony Earnshaw)
Charlotte Brontë became the subject of literary London gossip when she dedicated the second edition of Jane Eyre to William Makepeace Thackeray, by way of a thank you for his enthusiastic review. Readers saw unintended parallels between Mr Rochester and Thackeray, whose own wife was insane… (Lizzie Enfield)
“Jane Eyre” (1847)Long before she sets foot in Thornfield Hall, a young Jane Eyre lives through an outbreak of tuberculosis at Lowood Institution. Jane remains healthy, despite the aunt who sent her to Lowood hoping Jane would die from the contagion. Tuberculosis does claim the life Jane’s best friend, Helen Burns, just as it did the lives of Charlotte Brontë’s sisters, Elizabeth and Maria. They died in 1825 after being sent to the Clergy’s Daughters’ School. (Laura Hale Brockway)
The books in order are “Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse,” “Goth Girl and the Fete Worse than Death,” “Goth Girl and the Pirate Queen,” and my favorite, “Goth Girl and the Wuthering Fright.” Set in the late 1700s, Ada prepares to compete in the Literary Dog Show hosted by her father at the estate. With her best friend visiting on Christmas break, Ada has high hopes for the visit and the competition. Tomfoolery is afoot, however, when one of the entrants conspires to cheat. Part Steam Punk, part Goth, and part the England of Lord Byron, Mary Shelley, and the Brontë sisters, these little books complete with footnotes will delight children whose humor tends toward puns and riddles. Riddell’s enchanting illustrations highlight the atmosphere of the books and their eccentric characters. (Melony Carey)
Doyle prefería los ambientes orientales, y confinó durante muchos relatos a Sherlock en Londres, pero soltar al detective en los tétricos escenarios de las hermanas Brontë fue un acierto extremo, las tierras del norte, sus desoladores páramos trabajan a favor de la trama. Por encima del crimen el auténtico rival de Holmes es el ambiente: atávico, supersticioso, recorrido por vientos como premoniciones de espectros, paciente hasta la crueldad... Doyle parece complacerse en enviar primero a Watson y después a Holmes a que pongan orden en el mundo de Cumbres borrascosas, una atmósfera, un paisaje y una densidad moral capaces de mellar la confianza del detective en el orden lógico donde se sustenta (al menos en el orden de la ficción) su brillante juego de inducciones y deducciones. La novela amenaza con algo mucho más terrible que vencer a Holmes: destrozar el propio juego. Pero Doyle no fue tan lejos, por momentos enhebra la aguja, pero enseguida pierde el hilo; la novela oculta en su interior un profundo y sugestivo conflicto que no llega a encarar. (Gonzalo Torné) (Translation)
What book did you most enjoy in school?The book I liked the most in school was Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys. I was blown away by the alternate take on Jane Eyre from the perspective of Rochester’s first wife and without giving too much away, it’s a short novel about colonization, relationships, and mental illness that I’ll never forget. [...]Name a book you’ve pretended to have read.I never made it all the way through Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte and skipped through the book for school. I’ve tried a few times to get through the entire thing but the characters that fascinated me the most got the least amount of development and so I read other books like Wide Sargasso Sea to fill in those gaps and never quite made it back to Jane Eyre. I made sure to get the Cliff Notes for school projects and managed to pass any classes that covered it but haven’t actually read it. I’ll keep trying!
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