Something of a unicorn

The repair restorations of the Old School Room in Haworth have finished and BBC reports it:

A school where all three of the Brontë sisters taught has undergone a £150,000 restoration.

The Old School Room in Haworth was built by the literary trio's father, Patrick, in 1832 and, in 1854, played host to Charlotte's wedding reception.

Now used as a community hall, a three-month project to repair the 191-year-old roof has been completed.

Alex Ross-Shaw, from Bradford Council, said the work would help preserve the district's literary heritage.

Work to repair and insulate the roof was funded by a £130,000 grant from Keighley Towns Fund, with additional funding from the Bernard Sunley Foundation and Pilgrim Trust.

Mr Ross-Shaw said: "The Old School Room is a very important building not just for Haworth but also for the nation.

"It's a crucial part of the district's literary heritage, as well as a community hub and I am delighted that money from the Keighley Towns Fund has been able to secure and protect the fabric of the building well into the future." (...)

Averil Kenyon, chair of The Brontë Spirit charity, which manages and maintains the building, said: "The building is Grade Two listed so it was important that all the work kept the integrity of the building while ensuring it's in the best condition to continue as a thriving village hall at the heart of the community."

Rombalds Radio has further details.

Den of Geek lists the best films of 2023, so far:

Emily

Fictionalizing the real life of an author so it better resembles their most famous work is a tricky proposition. It often can play as aggressively twee (Becoming Jane) or too satisfied with its winks and asides (Shakespeare in Love). So Frances O’Connor’s moody and effecting directorial debut, Emily, is something of a unicorn. Without a trace of irony or hauteur, the film walks the line between biopic and wish fulfillment while examining the life of Emily Brontë through as Gothic and forlorn a lens as the one she used in Wuthering Heights.

A breakout showcase for actress Emma Mackey, Emily lives happily in the gloomy cynicism that the middle Brontë sister found ever so invigorating. Hers is a life of poetry by tombstones and stolen kisses by flickering candlelight; it’s also of a gushing romantic heart that’s kept smothered by the religious mores of her day, as well as the far more earthy human vices of jealousy, cruelty, and selfishness. Emily, her brother, and her illicit lover (an easily corruptible vicar, no less!), make for a bizarre kind of emotional love triangle that proves as vampiric as the cold gaze of Heathcliff on the moors. What a refreshingly bleak, and authentically Gothic, slice of romanticism. (David Crow)

Desimartini mentions Emma Mackey's role in the film. 

France Culture (Radio France) publishes a brief clip and article about Anne Brontë, "the forgotten sister":

Vous connaissez peut-être ses sœurs, Charlotte et Emily, monuments de la littérature anglaise, mais moins la plus jeune de la fratrie, Anne. Eclipsée par le génie des deux autres, Anne Brontë fut pourtant une romancière audacieuse, aux idées très modernes. (...)

Parmi ses autres inspirations, Anne Brontë est très influencée par la religion qui tient une place importante dans son écriture. L’éducation donnée par sa tante, une méthodiste convaincue, a trouvé un écho particulier en elle. “Elle croyait en le salut universel pour les pécheurs quels qu’ils soient. Même pour Arthur Huntingdon, le personnage débauché, atroce, de La locataire de Wildfell Hall*, elle croit que tout aussi endurci qu’il soit comme pécheur, il peut espérer le salut universel*”, précise la chercheuse. (Auriane Guerithault)(Translation)

The failure to obtain funds to improve a walking and cycling trail in Brontë Country is again discussed in The Telegraph & Argus while BBC reports that Bradford as UK City of Culture 2025 is to receive £10m from the government.

A contributor to Shondaland writes about discovering Jane Eyre.

One could argue, justifiably, that it was not until I reread Jane Eyre in college that I fully appreciated it. But Charlotte Brontë’s book was not wasted on me, even as a precocious third grader reading well above her grade level. I read Jane Eyre at precisely the right time, because it was less important to understand the nuances of the book as it was to feed my desire: my desire to read as much as I possibly could, my desire to know the world, my desire to read Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. I had read a classic and felt special to now be a member of the world of serious readers. (Jocelyn Ruggiero)

Greek City Times interviews Vefa Alexiadou, described as 'The Grand Dame Of Greek Cuisine'.

What do you remember from your childhood?

[...] When I was seven years old, my father passed away. After that, WW II and the German occupation followed, bringing four dark and difficult years. I remember the bombings vividly. We faced hunger and sadness, black despair. To block out any light, we covered the windows with black paper. To obtain some cheese and wheat for us to eat, my mother would travel to the villages and sell her bracelets and rings.

Fortunately, the storm eventually passed, and better times were on the horizon. Our education during those years was very limited, so when the war ended, we eagerly immersed ourselves in learning. At that time, we had a magazine in circulation that serialised works by great authors such as Victor Hugo, Emily Brontë, Shakespeare, and more. I would eagerly await the release of each issue, eager to read the next installment. Through reading, I received a tremendous education. May that magazine continue to inspire others. (Vassilios Nicolaos Vitsilogiannis)

Cambridgeshire Live talks about a development project in Fenland:

More than 90 new homes to be built on Chatteris Meadow compared to 'something out of Jane Eyre (...) Campaigners including Lawrence Weetman and Kirsty Pattison spoke against the development at FDC’s planning meeting, highlighting the loss of the space for local people. Mr Weetman likened the meadow, which was once a public park, to something out of Jane Eyre or Mansfield Park. (Joanna Taylor)

The Indian Express reviews the TV series Adhura:

After an initial failed attempt by the headmaster to have Vedant shipped off to his parents, it is decided that he must simply be kept hidden from public view — like Jane Eyre’s attic-dwelling metaphor — in the hope that his creepy antics don’t derail the reunion. (Rohan Naahar)

El Imparcial discusses Maldito Hamor de Cruz Sánchez Lara:

Y de hecho ésa es la mayor virtud de esta novela: la de lograr una síntesis funcional y moderna de Emily Brontë, Patricia Highsmith y la novela romántica actual. (Luis Artigue) (Translation)

L'Écho (Belgium) reviews the latest album by P.J. Harvey: I Inside the Whole Year Dying:

L'enfance ("Autumn Term"), celle décrite dans les tableaux de John Millais - autre symboliste anglais, vient faire irruption dans des morceaux comme "Seem and I" qui débute comme une comptine ou "A Child's Question, July" qui évoque une formule kabbalistique, la voix changeante de Harvey rappelant parfois Kate Bush.

Pas de "Hauts de Hurlevent" ni de "Wuthering Heights" ici, mais, délivré délicatement, un nuancier de jolis gris qui s'étirent jusqu'au noir et au blanc. (Bernard Roisin) (Translation)