The Red House to become luxury holiday acommodation

The future of the former Red House Museum on Yorkshire Live and The Telegraph & Argus:

Gomersal's historic Red House, formerly a museum, is to get a new lease of life as a short-term holiday destination and intimate wedding venue.

Proposals for the "ground-breaking" £600,000 project are set to come before Kirklees Council's decision-making Cabinet later this month (April 13).

They include "comprehensive refurbishment and some sympathetic remodelling" of the Grade II* listed 19th century manor house to become a five-star high-end luxury holiday home for commercial holiday letting, accommodating 10 people within five bedrooms to be let as a single holiday cottage unit.

The site's cart shed will be remodelled and refitted to provide four individual self-contained holiday apartments, each accommodating two people, available to book either individually or in addition to the main house. (...)

Revenue generated from holiday stays is expected to be sufficient to cover the costs of operating the site and to enable a series of planned open days/weekends ensuring community access to the site for planned and curated activities and events.

There will also be a room for weddings.

The handover could be as soon as March 2022 with the house open for holiday stays in April.

However the site will not be completely devoted to commercial hires. Community access to the house and gardens will be offered over a series of managed and curated events and open days thus allowing the public to enjoy the house and grounds. (Tony Earnshaw)

We agree that this is better than being sold to private hands. But it's far from optimal. And it sets a dangerous precedent. One step further in the Airbnbization of public and historic spaces.

Rising Sun (SouthAfrica) interviews a local writer, Shan Lee:

She has always had an appreciation for classic authors such as Emily Brontë and cites ‘Wuthering Heights’ by Brontë as one of her favourites.

The Telegraph & Argus mentions some films shot in the Bradford area:

Rita, Sue and Bob Too was filmed at locations including Bradford’s Buttershaw estate and the Brontë Parsonage Museum in Haworth. (Mark Stanford)

ScifiNow reminisces about Dark Shadows, the TV series: 

“There were no monsters when we started,” remembers [Mitchell] Ryan. “It was a gothic melodrama, and very romantic.” The response from the viewers, however, was not great: “It was lukewarm. It wasn’t taking its time slot, that’s for sure.”

“The ratings weren’t wonderful, mainly because we were essentially doing a modern-day Jane Eyre,” [Kathryn Leigh] Scott concurs. “All of the other soaps were doing these steamy plots about divorces and affairs and all of that sort of thing, and what we were doing was fairly staid.” (Martin Parsons)

Der Groene Amsterdarmmer (Netherlands) interviews writer Anjet Daanje, a genuine Brontëite: 

Abel Bormans: Wat is de mooiste sterfscène in een roman?

A.D.: In ieder geval de origineelste sterfscène is die van Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights van Emily Brontë. Heathcliff sterft omdat hij door de geest van zijn geliefde Cathy wordt achtervolgd. Telkens als hij wil gaan eten wordt hij door haar afgeleid, en dus sterft hij van de honger, maar wel als een gelukkig mens omdat hij eindelijk met zijn Cathy is herenigd. De meid die ‘s ochtends zijn lichaam vindt treft hem aan met a frightful, life-like gaze of exultation in zijn ogen. (...)

A.B.: Welk boek zou iedereen op z’n achttiende gelezen moeten hebben?

A.D.:Ik wil niet beweren dat iedereen voor zijn achttiende Jane Eyre van Charlotte Brontë moet hebben gelezen, maar als je dat wel doet begrijp je hopelijk voor de rest van je leven wat er zo mooi aan lezen is.(...)

A.B.:Emily of Charlotte Brontë?

A.D.:Dit is echt de gemeenste vraag voor mij die je maar kunt verzinnen. De roman waaraan ik nu werk is geïnspireerd door hen allebei, dus het is een beetje alsof ik tussen twee geliefden moet kiezen. Eigenlijk kan ik alleen argumenten voor Emily verzinnen – ze is als persoon intrigerender, Wuthering heights is superieur aan Charlotte’s beste roman en haar gedichten zijn beter. Toch kies ik Charlotte, omdat haar romans met zo veel psychologisch inzicht en overgave zijn geschreven. (Translation)

Eastern Eye talks about the book Green Unpleasant Land by Corinne Fowler:

There is the suggestion that Heathcliff in Emily Brontë’s 1847 classic novel, Wuther­ing Heights, might have been a black man, although his ethnicity was never spelt out.

Fowler said: “The mystery is part of the construction of the novel. But what histori­ans are interested in is the degree to which the area in which the Brontë sisters lived was so engaged with slave ownership.” (Amit Roy)

Michael Fassbender's fans celebrate the actor's birthday:

Jane Eyre (2011): A quintessential romantic drama, Jane Eyre, revolved around a governess who finds her true love in the owner of an old mansion. And while their romance blooms, there’s a terrible secret that he’s hiding from her.  A beautiful vintage romance that has all the right kinds of emotions, Jane Eyre is a must-see if you want to see Fassbender outside his comfort zone. (Zee5)

What happens to Michael Fassbender (Mr Rochester) at the end of the movie ''Jane Eyre?
He is Murdered
Loses his eyesight
Leaves Thornfield (Vaishnavi Navalka in Republic World)

EDIT: Michael beradu akting dengan Mia Wasikowska dalam film adaptasi novel klasik karya Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre (2011). Sukses bikin baper ! (Satria Wibawa in IDN Times (Indonesia)) (Translation)

The Nerd Daily interviews the film composer Kevin Matley who repeats that

Jericho Tadeo: Which film composers / soundtracks would be on your list of quintessential listening?

K.M.: Probably Jane Eyre by Dario Marianelli and pretty much anything by Jóhann Jóhannsson, Jonny Greenwood, and Thomas Newman.

The Washington Post publishes the obituary of the fashion designer Jessica McClintock:

 “I have a romantic feeling about life,” Ms. McClintock, who boasted that she used more lace than any other designer in America, once told an interviewer. “I like Merchant-Ivory movies and candlelight and beautiful rooms. I like the patina of age.” (...)

"I imagine myself lying here reading Emily Brontë," she told the reporter, reclining on a chaise. "I live in a dream world." (Emily Langer)

La Voz de Galicia (Spain) interviews Espido Freire on her new book, Tras los Pasos de Jane Austen:

Mila Méndez: ¿Tiene gancho todo lo victoriano?

E.F.:Y lo tiene Austen, que no nació ni creó su obra en esa época (como las Brontë), sino en la georgiana o de la regencia, que es anterior. Ella tuvo la oportunidad de leer y de tener cerca ejemplos de mujeres que escribían, incluso novela satírica y moralista. Y llega la época victoriana, de enorme esplendor, pero de un retroceso en valores, donde la mujer se reduce al ángel del hogar. Ahora estamos combinando olas sucesivas del posvictorianismo. Sobre todo, en el concepto del amor romántico. Ahí Austen no encaja particularmente bien. Habla del cortejo, pero también de matrimonios que se llevan mal, de las equivocaciones. Se atreve a reírse de los hombres. De jovencita convivió con muchos, con sus hermanos y en el internado de su padre, pastor. Tenía claro quién era ella y cómo estaba rodeada de mentes inferiores, sobre todo, masculinas. (Translation)

Proiezionidiborsa (Italy) recommends Jane Eyre:

 Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë, 1847

Questo è probabilmente uno dei più belli e struggenti romanzo d’amore mai concepito. La storia narra della protagonista Jane Eyre, una ragazza dal carattere forte e deciso e di Mr. Rochester, dal carattere burbero e dal passato misterioso. Come in ogni storia d’amore sapranno tirare fuori l’uno dall’altro rabbia e passione e cambiandosi, capiranno che cosa è l’amore. (Giulia Turini) (Translation)

Juventud Rebelde (Cuba) interviews the local writer and poet, Arlen Regueiro Mas:

Luis Raúl Vázquez Muñoz: Arlen, desde tu experiencia, los jóvenes en Cuba no leen, ¿verdad?

A.R.M.: ¿Que no leen? Ven acá, ¿y quién compró hace unos días los dos tomos de Crimen y castigo; o quién es esa muchachita que pasó por aquí preguntando por Jane Eyre y se llevó un ejemplar? La juventud en Cuba está leyendo. ¡Ah!, si la sociedad no se da cuenta de eso, son otros cinco pesos. (Translation)

Book Estuary posts about Jane Eyre. Rethinking British Literature posts about 'Sexism and Submission in Jane Eyre'.

Finally, we report the death due to complications from Covid-19 of David N. Matthews (1940-2021), co-writer (among many other things) of a 1998 musical version of Jane Eyre, premiered at the Erie Playhouse (Erie, PA). This same production will be available for streaming VOD next April 9-18 as announced a few days ago.