HAWORTH, West Yorkshire – A surge in tourism is sweeping through the historic home of the Brontë sisters following the release of Emerald Fennell’s new film adaptation of Wuthering Heights, officials at the Brontë Parsonage Museum have reported. The film, starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi and featuring a soundtrack by Charlie XCX, premiered on February 13th, sparking a renewed interest in the lives and works of Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Brontë.
Mia Ferullo, the museum’s digital engagement officer, described the response as “alucinante” – astounding – noting it’s the latest in a long line of revivals of interest in the Brontë sisters. “I’ve never seen so many people talking about Emily Brontë and Wuthering Heights,” Ferullo said. “It’s been really quite surreal. We’re talking about the Brontës every day, and everyone else is joining the conversation, and it’s everywhere.”
The renewed fascination extends beyond Wuthering Heights, with discussions as well circulating around an international television adaptation of Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, starring Aimee Lou Wood. Ferullo indicated that she sees no sign of the literary fervor waning. “A lot of people are picking up the book and discovering the Brontës for the first time,” she said. “It really feels like a highly big and special moment.”
Ferullo has been leading talks at the museum for the past two weeks on the phenomenon of “Brontëmania” and the history of literary pilgrimages to Haworth, which began in the late 19th century, even while their father, Reverend Patrick Brontë, was still alive. She explained that visitors historically came to Haworth seeking a connection to the place where the novels were created. “People from places as far away as the United States would come to Haworth to try and see the place where Charlotte Brontë wrote Jane Eyre and lived,” she said.
Even during Reverend Brontë’s lifetime, the house attracted curious visitors. He would reportedly provide signatures from Charlotte’s letters as keepsakes. “People would go to the church to look at the marriage register where Charlotte had written her name,” Ferullo added. “There was so much interest that, I believe, it was a contributing factor to the church deciding to sell the parsonage house – there were simply too many tourists.”
The enduring appeal of the Brontë sisters’ work is linked to the landscape surrounding Haworth, according to Ferullo. “People come to the house because they want to learn about the lives of the Brontës, but actually, it’s the moors surrounding it that create people feel like they’re stepping into the novels themselves,” she said. “I don’t believe they would have written things like Wuthering Heights without having lived in this area.”
The museum has seen increased book sales as a result of the film’s release. “With the film, we’ve obviously encouraged a lot of people to buy the book, and we’ve sold a lot of copies of Wuthering Heights in the shop,” Ferullo said. “But I think, also, people want to feel like they’re getting a little bit closer. And it’s quite an authentic experience to visit the actual place where it all began, where this novel was written.”
Fennell’s adaptation is just the latest in a long line of interpretations of Emily Brontë’s 1847 novel. The Brontë Parsonage Museum currently features an exhibition showcasing numerous adaptations, including films from 1920 and versions produced in Mexico and Japan.
Emerald Fennell has defended her interpretation of the classic, stating that a literal adaptation of the “dense, complicated and difficult” novel is not feasible for film. According to El Confidencial, Fennell described her film as a “version” of Wuthering Heights, shaped by her own teenage reading of the book. The film has sparked debate regarding its fidelity to the source material, with some critics questioning its provocative approach, as reported by CNN Español.
