Bronte enthusiasts hail ‘fantastic discovery’ of Wuthering Heights film script

Made in the 1920s, using locations around Haworth, the film was made by the Ideal Film Company and was the first ever adaptation of Emily Brontë novel.

However, no survivig copy of the film has been found, despite many enquiries over the years by the Brontë Parsonage.

The script, bought from a book dealer in West Sussex, was used by the director Arthur Victor Bramble and contains 22 pages of production notes including his annotations, along with details of costumes and locations used in each scene and press cuttings.

There are original stills of the film crew carrying their equipment and shots of the child actors.

Ann Dinsdale, collections manager at the Brontë Parsonage, said: “It has taken several years to even come close to finding out whether a copy of the film existed, and so to now be in ownership of this incredible script is a fantastic and overwhelming triumph. It’s such an iconic film and a great effort was made to ensure the film’s authenticity with locations set in the Haworth area and telling the whole story. It’s a great loss that this classic film has not survived, but this is a great start in establishing its history.”

The script will go on display in the Brontë Parsonage Museum early next year.