THE BRONTË Parsonage Museum reopens today (February 1) as it heralds a year dedicated to Wuthering Heights author Emily Brontë.

Staff at the Haworth museum are organising a host of events throughout the year celebrating the 200th anniversary of Emily’s birth in 1818.

There will be activities for all ages either at the museum or in nearby venues like the Old School Rooms and West Lane Baptist Centre.

The packed programme follows similar, hugely-successful years commemorating the 200th birthdays of Emily’s siblings Charlotte and Branwell in 2016 and 2017.

The Brontë Society, which runs the museum, also plans to mark Anne Brontë’s bicentenary and the life of Patrick Brontë as its five-year Brontë200 festival continues into 2020.

The society was so excited about 2018 being ‘Emily’s Year’ that it invited several notable creative people to lead projects, highlighting various aspects of the enigmatic writer’s personality, life and work.

It made the controversial decision to appoint model, academic, actress and social campaigner Lily Cole as the year’s main Creative Partner.

There will also be specially-committed artistic responses from writer-in-residence Patience Agbabi, visual artist Kate Whiteford and folk performers Adrian McNally and The Unthanks.

Kitty Wright, executive director of the Brontë Society, said she was thrilled to present the programme for the first half of 2018, calling Emily a respected poet and writer of one of the world’s best-loved novels.

She said: “We have lined up an exciting and varied programme of new commissions, exhibitions, talks, exclusive Parsonage Unwrapped evenings and other special events.”

Kitty highlighted the creation of a new manuscript for Wuthering Heights, to replace Emily’s lost original, which was handwritten line-by-line by Brontë Parsonage Museum visitors last year, in a project led by artist Clare Twomey.

Kitty said: “This was a project that captured the hearts and imaginations of many, and we’re pleased to have a finished manuscript on display during 2018.

“We are also very proud to have Branwell’s original ‘pillar portrait’ of the Brontë sisters, on loan from the National Portrait Gallery – a perfect addition to our celebrations.”

Visit bronte.org.uk/whats-on or call 01535 642323 for information about all the events.