Charlotte Jones on the Brontës among the Moderns

Dr. Charlotte Jones from the University of Oxford sparked the interest of the Brussels Brontë Group with her talk on May 10 on “The Brontës among the Moderns,” promising to show the influence of the literary sisters on eminent early 20th-century writers. 

 

The topic was rather a new perspective for our group, so the audience was quite curious as to what she would have to say. 

Nick Holland on faith and the Brontë sisters

Time again for another interesting morning of talks organised by the Brussels Brontë Group. The first of these on Saturday May 10 was given by Nick Holland, well known for his books on various members of the Brontë family. 

He is the author of In Search of Anne Brontë, Emily Brontë – A Life in 20 Poems and Aunt Branwell and the Brontë Legacy. He is working on a new book about Charlotte Brontë and her best friend Ellen Nussey. 

BBG member's calligraphy presented to Queen Camilla

In a recent blog post, I recounted my visit (ahead of its official opening) to the Brontë Birthplace, the house in Thornton where Charlotte, Branwell, Emily and Anne were born. 

I mentioned that the souvenirs on sale in the house include a card with a poem by Liliana Pasterska — with the calligraphy and a drawing of the house executed by Brussels Brontë Group member Marina Saegerman.

Opening of Brontë Birthplace in Thornton by Queen Camilla

Retelling the story of the Brontë sisters in Normandy

On a warm evening in early April, over 70 people crowded into the 18th-century court-room of the hôtel de ville, the mairie, of a small village in Haut-Normandie to hear a talk about Les Sœurs Brontë. 

The speaker, Myriam Campinaire, well known to members of the Brussels Brontë Group as its long-standing treasurer and one of its founding members, had been invited by the Friends Association of Lyons la Forêt, which will soon celebrate its centenary.

 

Brontë Birthplace and the Brussels Brontë Group

I was in Haworth over the weekend of 29-30 March, doing a recce for a trip to the Brontë village that I am organising for a small group of Brussels Brontë enthusiasts in June.  

In my travels, I visited the recently opened “Brontë Birthplace” in the village of Thornton. This is the house where Charlotte, Branwell, Emily and Anne were born while Patrick Brontë was curate there, before moving to Haworth. And I'm happy to share a small but special link between the Brontë Birthplace and the Brussels Brontë Group.