As more than 100 poets from Yorkshire and beyond prepare to converge on Haworth this weekend for a two-day festival of poetry, the man who had the original idea for Poetry at the Parsonage has talked to Write Out Loud about how it all came about.

Matthew Withey, operations and development manager of the Brontë Society, based at the Brontë Parsonage museum in Haworth, said the society had been planning since 2014 for a year-long programme of events and celebrations to mark the bicentenary of the birth of Charlotte Brontë (1816-1855). “From the outset the idea has always been to host a free-to-enter community festival at the height of the summer.”

But why poetry? When we think of the Brontës, we think of those classic novels Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, don’t we?

Matthew said: “The Brontës are famous around the world as novelists – creators of some of the most powerful, passionate and well-loved narrative texts in the English language. Their status today as cultural icons means that we sometimes forget they were little more than young, up-and-coming poets in their own day. They weren’t even that up-and-coming. Their first publication ‘Poems’ – a collection of poems by the three sisters – sold just two copies. Charlotte was the only one who lived long enough to witness her own success and fame. The others died without ever knowing the impact their work would have on the public. Here at the Parsonage, we like to think that if the Brontës were alive today, then they’d definitely be taking part in Poetry at the Parsonage.”

He added: “We are very hopeful that it will meet its objectives of benefiting the community in Haworth and showcasing contemporary poetry in Yorkshire. We hope very much that it will become an annual and much-anticipated fixture on the poetry circuit.”

The Brontë Society has been in the news in recent years after a spate of rows and resignations. But Matthew said that the turmoil wasn’t related to Poetry at the Parsonage, “and certainly won’t affect its delivery in any way”.

Poetry at the Parsonage will run from 12-6pm on Saturday 2 July and Sunday 3 July. Admission is free, although donations of £3 per head are welcomed. There will be two main performance areas, Charlotte’s Stage and Emily’s Stage, and the festival will take place in the Parsonage garden, the Old School Room and West Lane Baptist Centre, with refreshments available.

Poets lined up include Helen Mort, Kate Fox, Steve Pottinger, Steve Nash, Carole Bromley, Gaia Holmes, John Foggin, Matthew Hedley Stoppard, Toria Garbutt, and Matt Abbott.  Poetry groups  will be performing as well, including Poems, Prose and Pints;  OWF Press; Word Space;  Word Club; and  Beehive Poets. Comperes include Mark Connors, Winston Plowes, Genevieve Walsh, and Craig Bradley.

Matthew added: “There is no way that I and other staff here at the Parsonage could have brought this event together without the knowledge, enthusiasm and generous support of Mark Connors of Word Club, who we’ve been working in association with together with Joanna Sedgwick of Otley Poets. Mark and Jo have curated our programme for the two days of the festival, and we’re really, really excited about the range, variety and excellence of the line-ups they’ve put together.”