BRANWELL Bronte failed to achieve the enduring literary success of his sisters, and is remembered largely for his drinking habits than his literary or artistic success.

But this year - the bi-centernary of his birth - sees a celebration of his life and work.

Next week a storyboard dedicated to Branwell’s artwork will be unveiled at North Parade in Bradford, close to where he had a studio.

It will, says Bruce Barnes, who is behind the project, be the first monument to any of the Brontes in the city centre.

Barnes takes up the story: "Branwell Brontë has long been overshadowed by his more famous sisters whose novels reached an international audience. Although Branwell remains an enigma, his biographers and academics accept that one of the happier periods of his adult life was the year he spent in Bradford, from 1838-1839, working as an artist.

“While the town was on the brink of becoming a major industrial metropolis, it was riven by unrest with riots against draconian Poor Laws, and large Chartists meetings calling for social and democratic reform.

“From his studio and lodging on Fountain Street, Branwell painted portraits of local worthies, continued his contribution with Charlotte Brontë to the Tales of Angria, and wrote and sought publication of his poetry. He enjoyed the social scene in Bradford inns, such as the George Hotel in Market Street and the Queen’s in Bridge Street where artists and writers got together to talk and drink.

“And it’s at the top end of North Parade, on Bradford’s latest stretch of pubs and bars, that the Branwell Brontë storyboard will be unveiled by Councillor Sarah Ferriby on Saturday, July 1 between 12noon and 1pm, followed by a celebration in the City Gent from 1-2pm.

“Visitors will receive complimentary copies, while stocks last, of the Cartwright Hall exhibition catalogue Branwell Brontë & his Circle-Artistic, life in Bradford 1830-1850.”

Adds Bruce: “The storyboard includes images of some of Branwell’s Bradford portraits and draws the viewer’s attention to his now vanished studio on the side street, still referred to as Fountain Street.

“Nothing remains of the street that Branwell knew, but a 1940s photograph of Fountain Street with its housing forms the backdrop to the storyboard. It is the first public monument representing the Brontes in the city centre.”

The storyboarded, which is being unveiled as part of Bradford Literature Festival, features images of portraits Branwell completed at his studio in the city, along with explanatory text.

The unveiling will followed by refreshments and a reading in the City Gent from poetry and prose Branwell wrote during his stay in the town.