Ticking down to reopening day

The Yorkshire Post features the grandfather clock at the Brontë Parsonage Museum.

The 19th century clock was part of the evening ritual for the father of Britain’s most famous literary family, as he would stop religiously every evening to wind it up on the stroke of 9pm as he made his way upstairs to bed.

And the 6ft tall timepiece, which was made by Barraclough of Haworth, has taken on an added resonance in the museum that is now housed in the former Brontë family home.

It has just been returned to the Brontë Parsonage in Haworth after being restored, an annual task that was abandoned last year as the first lockdown was imposed.

The clock remained silent throughout the intervening 12 months, but it is now back on the staircase after being cleaned and conserved, its distinctive ticking resonating around the museum.

For the Parsonage’s chief curator, Ann Dinsdale, it is a moment that signifies a renewed hope for the future as the museum’s staff and volunteers prepare to re-open to the public next month.

She told The Yorkshire Post: “The Parsonage has been eerily quiet for so long now, but to have the clock back and ticking again is wonderful. It really is a big moment for us all, as it is symbolic that the museum is about to re-open to the public again.”

The work was carried out by David Barker, a fellow of the British Horological Institute and one of only a handful of accredited clock conservators in Britain.

He said: “I have been working on the Parsonage’s clocks for 30 years, and I have enjoyed connecting with them again. It is nice to know that the clock is back where it should be, and working again.”

The Parsonage is set to welcome back its first visitors again on May 19, and anyone passing through the entrance will be given unprecedented access to witness some of the 7,000 artefacts which are in the museum’s collection.

Visitor numbers will be limited to just six people every 15 minutes, meaning that the venue will be free of the crowds who normally pack into its corridors and rooms. [...]

Ms Dinsdale said: “We obviously want people to be able to enjoy the Parsonage safely, so that means people will be able to see the exhibits on show in a manner which is definitely a break from the norm.

“It really will be a special time for anyone coming to visit, and we are just so glad to be able to welcome people back once again.”

Among the highlights once the museum re-opens will be the exhibition marking the bicentenary of Anne Brontë’s birth, which has been extended into this year after the Parsonage was forced to close in 2020.

Among the other artefacts on display will be five of the six “little books” which were written by Charlotte Brontë when she was aged just 14. (Paul Jeeves)

Many people help make the Brontë Parsonage as lovely as it always is.

Our team of volunteer gardeners have been hard at work for the past year, coming in when they've been able to do so safely to maintain the Parsonage garden. We think they're absolute stars - here are some pics of the beautiful blooms we're able to enjoy due to their hard work! pic.twitter.com/yuyaj6YlFx

— Brontë Parsonage (@BronteParsonage) April 9, 2021

A contributor to The Sydney Morning Herald wonders why motherhood is rarely the main subject in novels.

During my daughter’s early years, one of my greatest escapes was (as it has always been) reading fiction. But the more I read, the more I wondered why the intensity of motherhood, and in particular single motherhood, had not been treated as a worthy literary subject by many writers.

James Joyce wrote a book about a guy just walking around Dublin. Why had no one ever done the interior monologue of a woman sitting through a mother’s group? Emily Brontë wrote the compelling tale of Heathcliff’s rage, but why had no writer ever attempted the same for a toddler? Why were there so few books about the minutiae of mothering? (Jacqueline Maley)

Verily magazine asked its readers to share their favorite characters and stories.

“Jane Eyre—she’s a confident, virtuous woman who stands true to her morals and convictions despite the pressures around her and finds love so much greater because of it.”

– Christina, Denver, Colorado

And here's the blunder of the day. From El Periódico (in Catalan):

I sense deixar Twitter, els hashtag #Sanditon i #SaveSanditon concentren un munt d’aficionats arreu del món de la sèrie de la BBC que es pot veure a Filmin. Com que una temporada es fa curta, i sense concreció d’una segona, els fans tornen a veure els capítols i els comenten en temps real de vegades fins i tot comentant la novel·la en què està inspirada la sèrie, ‘Sanditon’ de Jane Eyre. L’obra inacabada de la mítica novel·lista, que ha publicat Alba, té un inesperat i àvid focus d’atenció.  (Carol Álvarez) (Translation)

Legendary writer indeed!