The longest period of closure in the history of the Brontë Parsonage Museum

Keighley News rightly reports that us Brontë fans are delighted to hear that the Brontë Parsonage Museum will be reopening at the end of this month.

The Brontë Parsonage Museum will reopen to the public on Saturday August 29. Entry to the museum in Haworth will be by pre-booked, timed tickets that will go on sale at midday on Friday August 21.

The long-awaited public reopening of the museum and shop will follow a special preview day for Brontë Society members the previous day. Tickets for the August 28 event will also go on sale on August 21, from the website bronte.org.uk.

A spokesman said: "The Brontë Parsonage Museum opened at Haworth Parsonage on August 4, 1928. "Ninety-two years later, following the longest period of closure in all our history, we are delighted to announce that we will reopen."

Over the past few weeks museum staff have been making major changes so they can provide a Covid-friendly experience, including perspex screens, changes to the shop layout, and timed tickets to ensure social distance between groups of visitors.

The museum promises a "very special experience" because visitors will have different parts of the house to themselves as they move through the building.

Brontë Lounge, an programme of talks and readings, will return on Thursday August 20 when renowned BBC broadcaster Samir Ahmed will present 'Speaking Up: The Quiet Power of Anne Brontë' at 7.30pm.

Samira, presenter of Front Row and Radio 4 and Newswatch on BBC1, is the Brontë Society's Creative Partner for Anne Brontë's bicentenary celebrations this year.

Earlier this year, Samira won a landmark equal pay employment tribunal against the BBC for sex discrimination. She said she re-read Anne Bronte's novel The Tenant of Wildfell Hall while preparing for the tribunal and "felt Anne's voice and sense of indignation" speak to her across the centuries.

Tickets for the Brontë Lounge cost £5. Visit bronte.org.uk for further information about the reopening and upcoming events. (David Knights)

Il Libraio (Italy) interviews film director Ferzan Özpetek, who speaks about reading Jane Eyre as a young boy.

Quali letture le sono state d’ispirazione?

“Leggevo molto i classici, la letteratura russa e francese. Mi piacevano i libri profondi, e adoravo James Baldwin. Da bambino mi rinchiudevo a leggere nella biblioteca di casa, ricordo che una volta entrò mia madre con una sua amica e finsi di essermi addormentato per farle andare via. Mentre uscivano l’amica le disse: ‘Ma gli fai leggere Jane Eyre a undici anni, con quelle scene spaventose?’. Che delusione poi: sono andato a cercare le scene di cui parlava e non ho trovato niente di scandaloso. Tra gli italiani invece ho amato moltissimo Va’ dove ti porta il cuore: vorrei essere Susanna Tamaro per poter scrivere un romanzo così”. (Amelia Cartia) (Translation)

La Nación (Argentina) interviews writer Margo Glatz, who speaks about English women writers having to hide behind pseudonyms in the 19th century.

Aunque en Inglaterra hubo una tradición importante de mujeres escritoras, como lo pongo en mi libro. Jane Austen, George Eliot, que tuvo que usar un seudónimo masculino para imponerse. O las Brontë, que para publicar firmaron con apodos masculinos. Son como estrellas fugaces en el firmamento de la escritura. Creo que eso se ha terminado en muchos sentidos. Ahora, la proliferación de escritura femenina es impactante. Sin embargo, hay ciertos aspectos que las mujeres no hemos logrado. (Marcela Ayora) (Translation)

The Times Daily Quiz has a Brontë-related question:

3 The sole opera by the film score composer Bernard Herrmann was an adaptation of which Brontë novel? (Olav Bjortomt)

Mais Minas (Brazil) features Wuthering Heights.