History of Wuthering Heights in Timeline

Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë's sole novel, published in 1847, explores the intertwined lives of the Earnshaw and Linton families on the Yorkshire moors and Heathcliff, the Earnshaws' adopted son. The story revolves around themes of love, obsession, revenge, and eventual reconciliation. Influenced by Romanticism and Gothic elements, it narrates the tumultuous relationships and destructive passions fueled by social class and unrequited love. Heathcliff's relentless pursuit of vengeance against those who wronged him and Catherine Earnshaw defines much of the narrative, leading to tragic consequences across generations. The novel is a classic of English literature.

1916: John Cowper Powys Refers to Vision

In 1916, John Cowper Powys referred to Emily Brontë’s "tremendous vision".

1920: Earliest Known Film Adaptation

In 1920, the earliest known film adaptation of Wuthering Heights was filmed in England, directed by A.V. Bramble.

1925: Virginia Woolf Affirms Greatness

In 1925, modernist novelist Virginia Woolf affirmed the greatness of Wuthering Heights.

1926: Charles Percy Sanger Affirms Literary Craft

In 1926, Charles Percy Sanger's work on the chronology of Wuthering Heights affirmed Emily's literary craft and meticulous planning of the novel and disproved Charlotte's presentation of her sister as an unconscious artist.

1934: Lord David Cecil Comments on Appreciation

In 1934, Lord David Cecil commented that Emily Brontë was not properly appreciated, even by her admirers.

1934: Lord David Cecil Draws Attention to Contrast

In 1934, Lord David Cecil drew attention to the contrast between the two main settings in Wuthering Heights.

1939: Wuthering Heights Film Release

In 1939, the film Wuthering Heights, starring Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon and directed by William Wyler, was released. It won the 1939 New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Film and was nominated for the 1939 Academy Award for Best Picture.

1948: F.R. Leavis Excludes From Great Tradition

In 1948, F. R. Leavis excluded Wuthering Heights from the great tradition of the English novel.

1949: Simone de Beauvoir Suggests World Collapses

In 1949, Simone de Beauvoir suggests that when Catherine says "I am Heathcliff": "her own world collapse(s) in contingence, for she really lives in his."

1953: BBC Television Production

In 1953, Nigel Kneale's script was produced for BBC Television, starring Richard Todd as Heathcliff and Yvonne Mitchell as Cathy. Broadcast live, no recordings of the production are known to exist.

1954: Walter Allen speaks of two houses in the novel

In 1954, Walter Allen spoke of the two houses in the novel as symbolising 'two opposed principles which ... ultimately compose a harmony'.

1954: Spanish Adaptation Released

In 1954, the Spanish adaptation, retitled Abismos de pasión, directed by Luis Buñuel and set in Catholic Mexico, was released.

1958: CBS Television Adaptation

In 1958, an adaptation aired on CBS television as part of the series DuPont Show of the Month starring Rosemary Harris as Cathy and Richard Burton as Heathcliff.

1959: Australian Television Adaptation

In 1959, Nigel Kneale's script was adapted for Australian television.

1962: Second BBC Television Adaptation

In 1962, the second adaptation using Nigel Kneale's script was produced for BBC Television, starring Claire Bloom as Catherine and Keith Michell as Heathcliff.

1964: French Mini-Series Broadcast

In 1964, the French mini-series Les Hauts de Hurlevent, created and directed by Jean-Paul Carrère, began broadcasting on the first ORTF channel.

1965: David Daiches refers to Cecil's interpretation

In 1965, David Daiches referred to Cecil's interpretation as being 'persuasively argued' though not fully acceptable.

1966: Hindi Film Release

In 1966, the Hindi film Dil Diya Dard Liya, directed by Abdul Rashid Kardar and Dilip Kumar, based upon the novel, was released.

1967: BBC Adaptation Inspiration

In 1967, the BBC adaptation of Wuthering Heights inspired Kate Bush to write her song "Wuthering Heights".

1967: BBC Television Dramatisation

In 1967, the BBC produced a four-part television dramatisation starring Ian McShane and Angela Scoular.

1968: French Mini-Series Broadcast

In 1968, the French mini-series Les Hauts de Hurlevent, created and directed by Jean-Paul Carrère, ended broadcasting on the first ORTF channel.

1970: First Colour Film Version Released

In 1970, the film with Timothy Dalton as Heathcliff, the first colour version of the novel, was released.

1971: Daphne du Maurier Argues Supreme Romantic Novel

In 1971, Daphne du Maurier argued the status of Wuthering Heights as a "supreme romantic novel".

1975: Terry Eagleton Explores Power Relationships

In 1975, Terry Eagleton further explores the power relationships between "the landed gentry and aristocracy, the traditional power-holders, and the capitalist, industrial middle classes".

1976: Wind & Wuthering Album

In 1976, the English rock band Genesis released their album Wind & Wuthering, alluding to the Brontë novel in its title and in the titles of two tracks.

1977: Thomas John Winnifrith argues allusions to Heaven and Hell

In 1977, Thomas John Winnifrith argues that the allusions to Heaven and Hell are more than metaphors, and have a religious significance.

1978: Release of "Wuthering Heights" by Kate Bush

In 1978, Kate Bush's song "Wuthering Heights", inspired by Brontë's novel and the 1967 BBC adaptation, was released as her debut single.

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1978: BBC TV Serialisation Produced

In 1978, the BBC produced a five-part TV serialisation of the book starring Ken Hutchinson, Kay Adshead and John Duttine, with music by Carl Davis.

1979: Sandra Gilbert and Susan Gubar Read the Novel

In 1979, Sandra Gilbert and Susan Gubar read Wuthering Heights as a mythic response to, and proto-feminist correction of, Milton's patriarchal Christian myth of human origins in 'Paradise Lost'.

1980: Crimes of Passion album

In 1980, Pat Benatar covered the song "Wuthering Heights" on her Crimes of Passion album.

1985: French Film Adaptation Released

In 1985, the French film adaptation, Hurlevent by Jacques Rivette, was released.

1988: Japanese Adaptation Released

In 1988, Yoshishige Yoshida's adaptation was released, transposed to medieval Japan.

1989: "It's All Coming Back to Me Now"

In 1989, Jim Steinman wrote the song "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" under the influence of Wuthering Heights, describing it as being about obsession with love.

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1990: Changing Heaven Novel

In 1990, Jane Urquhart's novel Changing Heaven featured Wuthering Heights and the ghost of Emily Brontë prominently in the narrative.

1991: Filipino Film Adaptation Released

In 1991, Filipino director Carlos Siguion-Reyna made a film adaptation titled Hihintayin Kita sa Langit.

1992: Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights film release

In 1992, the film Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche was released, including the second generation story.

1993: Angra's Cover

In 1993, the Brazilian heavy metal band Angra released their version of Kate Bush's "Wuthering Heights" on their debut album Angels Cry.

1995: Windward Heights

In 1995, Maryse Condé's Windward Heights (La migration des coeurs), a reworking of Wuthering Heights set in Cuba and Guadeloupe, was released.

2000: Hindi Film Release

In 2000, the Hindi film Dhadkan, directed by Dharmesh Darshan and produced by Ratan Jain, based upon the novel, was released.

2002: Publication of A True Novel

In 2002, Mizumura Minae's novel A True Novel (Honkaku shosetsu) which is inspired by Wuthering Heights, was published.

2002: Oxford Companion states union of contrasting worlds

In 2002, the Oxford Companion to English Literature stated that the ending of the novel points to a union of 'the two contrasting worlds and moral orders represented by the Heights and the Grange'.

2003: MTV Version Release

In 2003, MTV produced a poorly reviewed version set in a modern California high school.

2003: Robert McCrum's list of 100 greatest novels

In 2003, writer and editor Robert McCrum placed Wuthering Heights in his list of 100 greatest novels of all time in The Guardian.

2007: British Poll Presents Greatest Love Story

In 2007, a British poll presented Wuthering Heights as the greatest love story of all time.

2008: "Cath..." Song Inspired

In 2008, the indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie released the song "Cath...", inspired by Wuthering Heights.

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2009: ITV Drama Series Airs

In 2009, ITV's two-part drama series starring Tom Hardy, Charlotte Riley, Sarah Lancashire, and Andrew Lincoln aired.

2011: Graphic Novel

In 2011, Classical Comics published a graphic novel version of Wuthering Heights, adapted by Sean Michael Wilson and illustrated by John M. Burns, which was later shortlisted for the Stan Lee Excelsior Awards.

2011: British Film Release

In 2011, the British film starring Kaya Scodelario as Catherine Earnshaw and James Howson as Heathcliff, directed by Andrea Arnold, was released.

2013: Perdita Novel

In 2013, Hilary Scharper's ecogothic novel Perdita, which was deeply influenced by Wuthering Heights, was released.

2015: Jane Ciabattari Polls Critics

In 2015, Jane Ciabattari polled 82 book critics and presented Wuthering Heights as number 7 in the list of 100 greatest British novels for BBC Culture.

2015: Lifetime TV Movie Release

In 2015, Wuthering High, a TV Movie shown on Lifetime, was released, set in Malibu, California.

2015: Robert McCrum's list of 100 best novels

In 2015, writer and editor Robert McCrum placed Wuthering Heights in his list of 100 best novels written in English.

2017: Wuthering Poem

In 2017, Tanya Grae's poem "Wuthering" which uses Wuthering Heights as an allegory, was released.

2018: Jimmy Urine's Cover

In 2018, Jimmy Urine released an electropunk cover of Kate Bush's "Wuthering Heights".

2018: Ill Will Novel Release

In 2018, Michael Stewart's novel 'Ill Will', a first-person narrative of Heathcliff's missing years from 1780, was released.

2018: Penguin presents list of 100 must-read classic books

In 2018, Penguin presented a list of 100 must-read classic books and placed Wuthering Heights at number 71.

2019: The West Indian Novel

In 2019, Valerie Browne Lester's novel, The West Indian, imagined an origin story for Heathcliff in 1760s Jamaica.

2021: Theatrical Version Shown

In 2021, Emma Rice directed a theatrical version that was shown online and at the Bristol Old Vic.

2021: Bone House Chapbook Release

In 2021, K-Ming Chang's chapbook Bone House, a queer Taiwanese-American retelling of Wuthering Heights, was released by Bull City Press.

2022: Emily Biopic Release

In 2022, Emma Mackey starred in a biopic of Emily Brontë in Emily. The film charts the life of Brontë and the inspiration she gained for writing Wuthering Heights.

2022: Theatrical Version at National Theatre

In 2022, the Emma Rice production of Wuthering Heights was performed at the National Theatre.

2024: "Through Patches of Violet" Release

In 2024, the indie band "Mili" released the single "Through Patches of Violet" with themes influenced by Wuthering Heights, featuring voices of Heathcliff and Catherine.

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November 2025: Wuthering Heights Album Announcement

In November 2025, Charli XCX announced her album Wuthering Heights, inspired by her work on Fennell's film adaptation.

February 2026: Wuthering Heights Album Release

Charli XCX's album Wuthering Heights, announced in November 2025, is scheduled to be released on 13 February 2026.

2026: Emerald Fennell Adaptation Release

In 2026, an adaptation directed by Emerald Fennell, Wuthering Heights, was released, starring Margot Robbie as Catherine Earnshaw and Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff.