A BBC crew is in Haworth today only hours before the launch of a major Brontë celebration.

Plans for a five-year-long festival to mark the Bronte siblings' 200th birthdays will be launched tonight at the house in Thornton where most of them were born.

Coincidentally, One Show presenter Cerys Matthews is making a short film about the youngest sister, Anne Bronte.

The Brontë200 festival, masterminded by the Brontë Society and the Brontë Parsonage Museum, will last five years.

It will begin next year with Charlotte’s 200th anniversary, followed by Branwell in 2017, Emily in 2018 and Anne in 2020.

The Brontë Society also plans to commemorate the siblings' father Patrick Brontë in 2019, 200 years after he was invited to take up the parson’s role in Haworth.

The launch party, being held on the same day as Charlotte Bronte's 199th birthday, is at Emily’s, in Thornton. It is hosted jointly by proprietor Marc de Luca and staff from the the Brontë Parsonage Museum.

Guests at the party will hear how the Brontë Society intends to ‘bring the Brontës to the world and the world to Yorkshire’ through a series of events, exhibitions and partnership projects.

Tracy Chevalier, world-renowned author of Girl With A Pearl Earring, is working with the Bronte Parsonage Museum on several projects.

These will include an exhibition at the Parsonage, entitled I Shall Go Off Like A Bombshell, which will contrast the smallness of Charlotte’s world with the greatness of her ambition and achievements.

Tracy will edit a collection of short stories influenced by the writing of Charlotte Brontë, entitled Reader, I Married Him, to be published in spring next year.

Tracy said: “I have long loved Charlotte Brontë and am thrilled to be involved in the upcoming celebration of her bicentenary.

“The Parsonage is a unique house; it’s incredible to see the place where so much creativity arose. I’m hoping to sprinkle some surprises in amongst the dresses and writing desks – including a Twitter tour of the house and exhibition, and even a knitted Jane Eyre!”

Next year will also see Celebrating Charlotte, a touring exhibition which will be shown at the National Portrait Gallery in London and the Morgan Library and Museum in New York.

The Brontë Society this week launched the #seekingcharlotte social media campaign, seeking women of all ages named Charlotte to share their famous namesake’s birthday.

Matthew Withey, chairman of the Brontë Society Bicentenary Committee, said: “The bicentenaries of the Brontë siblings provide a tremendous opportunity for the Brontë Society to celebrate the legacy of the Brontës across the globe.”

There will be a website, bronte200.org, which will serve as a hub for all events and activities connected to the Bicentennial programme.