The year of events celebrating the acclaimed author was officially launched by Visit West at the National Portrait Gallery in London.
This year marks 250 years since the birth of Austen and a year-long campaign of events will be taking place across the country in places where she lived, studied and found inspiration for her novels.
Led by Visit West in partnership with Visit Hampshire, Visit Reading and Visit Peak District & Derbyshire, Austen 250 includes interactive activities, events and guided tours, along with places to eat and stay during a visit.
Events will be taking place throughout the year, with Austen’s official birthday not until December. New exhibitions and openings have also been announced for the coming year as part of the campaign.
Bath
Austen lived in Bath from 1801 to 1806 and there is a variety of attractions and events to enjoy during a visit to the UK’s only city to be a designated World Heritage Site in its entirety. The celebration of Jane Austen will be focused around Bath, which is home to the Jane Austen Centre, where visitors can gain an insight into the author and the era in which she lived.
Paul Crossey, director of the Jane Austen Centre, told me why Bath is a great location for Jane Austen fans and groups to visit. He said: “Bath is absolutely fantastic. It’s like a film set in itself. You walk around the streets and so little of it has changed since Jane Austen’s time. The lovely thing is, if Jane Austen was around today she would probably still be able to navigate her way around the city, because so much is unchanged.”
“We have more actors playing the roles of the characters from Jane Austen’s novels than we have ever had. Visitors are walking into a Grade II listed Georgian townhouse and it’s full of character, life and atmosphere.
“We offer private group tours, for groups of 12 to over 20, or you can do a walking tour in the city. The tour guides do the tour in the same way as an actor and they play a character as they take you around the city.”
Groups can also take advantage of discounted group rates when booking centre visits and walking tours.
The city will host the annual Jane Austen Festival from Friday 12th to Sunday 21st September, celebrating all things Austen, beginning with a Regency Costumed Promenade.
On Friday 19th September, a ball will take place at the Pump Rooms, with an outdoor Sense & Sensibility-themed event on the evening of Sunday 14th September 2025.
A full schedule of events with further details is set to be announced later this year.
“The lovely thing is, if Jane Austen was around today she would probably still be able to navigate her way around the city, because so much is unchanged.”
Paul Crossey, director of the Jane Austen Centre
Hampshire
Austen was born in Hampshire, living and spending time in Chawton, Winchester, Southampton, Alton and Steventon.
Jane Austen’s House in Chawton, the home where she wrote and published Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, is holding a programme of events this year, including a new permanent exhibition, Jane Austen and the Art of Writing.
The exhibition looks at her creative process and features items from the museum’s collection, including objects that inspired the writer and a full set of first editions of her novels.
No. 8 College Street, Winchester, the home where Jane Austen spent the final weeks of her life and passed away on the 18th July 1817, will open to the public for the first time from 4th June until 30th August.
It will host an exhibition about her life in Winchester, including a specially commissioned film and artefacts from the collections of Winchester College. Private guided tours for up to 15 guests will be available at 9am or 5pm on Wednesdays and Saturdays in June, July, and August.
From 25th July to 2nd November, the Gallery at The Arc, Winchester will host Beyond the Bonnets: Working Women in Jane Austen’s Novels.
As well as exploring the stories of the working women in her novels, the exhibition will also feature real-life women from Regency Hampshire, whose lives are reflected in Austen’s characters. Groups of 15 or more can arrange visits to the gallery by calling 03707 796 833.
Reading
Jane Austen’s former school, Reading Ladies Boarding School, based in the former gateway of the medeival Reading Abbey, will open for guided tours every Saturday frp, April to October. The school has been cited as the inspiration for Mrs Goddard’s School in Emma and pre-arranged group tours will be available.
The Mill at Sonning theatre will host a sequel to Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice from 1st May to 28th June. Titled Death Comes to Pemberley and based on the novel by P.D. James, the show tells the story of a murder in the woods close to Pemberley, the home of Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice and the investigation by the characters that follows. All tickets include a two-course meal before the show and groups can enquire about group booking discounts.
Peak District & Derbyshire
Jane Austen wrote there is ‘no finer county in England than Derbyshire’ in Pride and Prejudice and the area has links to the novel.
The market town of Bakewell is believed to have inspired Lambton, whilst Pemberley is based on Chatsworth. The house and gardens at Chatsworth can be visited year-round, with more than 25 rooms and 105-acres of gardens to explore.
The estate will host a Jane Austen Weekend from 13th to 15th June, with three days of activities taking place including themed afternoon tea.
Two Regency balls are set to take place, the first on 14th June and the second in December. Elsewhere, Buxton Crescent Hotel will host a Regency ball on 27th September.
For more information about events taking place as part of Jane Austen’s 250th anniversary celebrations, visit visitbath.co.uk/inspire-me/literary-bath/jane-austen-bath.
