This introductory talk by Libby Tempest, Chair of the Gaskell Society, explores the relationship between these two giants of 19th century literature. Charlotte Brontë and Elizabeth Gaskell were opposites in many ways, yet they were profoundly interested in each other’s work and lives: their first meeting in the Lake District in 1850 led to a real friendship. Libby will explore letters, writings and contemporary accounts to try and discover what held the friendship between these two extraordinary women together.

Part of a series of events by Elizabeth Gaskell’s House in partnership with the Brontë Parsonage Museum.