A HAWORTH councillor has spoken out in support of supermodel and actress Lily Cole whose appointment as a patron to the Bronte Society has sparked a backlash.

Cole has hit out at critics who slammed plans for her to make a film in commemoration of Emily Bronte. Her comments, in a statement shared by the BBC, came after the society’s Bronte Parsonage Museum, in Haworth, announced her as “creative partner” for its celebrations marking the bicentenary of Emily’s birth.

She is said to have considered using a pseudonym for her work, as the Bronte sisters had done in order to be taken more seriously.

It was reported that Bronte expert and author Nick Holland had stepped down from his role at the Bronte Society, stating that Emily Bronte would not have approved of a model taking on the job.

But speaking in support of Cole, Councillor Rebecca Poulsen (Con, Worth Valley) said: “I cannot get over the furore that this has caused and from what I can see, it is only from one person.

“While Mr Holland is entitled to his opinion, does he mean that only writers should read about the Brontes? Miss Cole appears to be very passionate about the subject and is likely to bring the Brontes to a new generation in a different way.

“I think she will do a great job and we will welcome her to Haworth when she visits.”

Cole, who rose to fame in her teens as a model before claiming acting roles in St Trinian’s and Elizabeth I, pointed out that the writer would probably not have judged the quality of her contribution just on her name.

The 30-year-old, who has a double first in history of art from Cambridge University, said: “Emily Bronte, whose extraordinary novel Wuthering Heights has stirred the world for over 150 years, published her work under an androgynous pseudonym: Ellis Bell.

“When I was asked by the Bronte Parsonage Museum to work on a piece to commemorate Emily Bronte’s birth, I immediately thought of Emily’s pseudonym, and what that gesture represented. I find myself wondering, fleetingly, if I should present the short film I am working on for the Bronte Parsonage Museum under a pseudonym myself, so that it will be judged on its own merits, rather than on my name, my gender, my image or my teenage decisions.

“I would not be so presumptuous as to guess Emily’s reaction to my appointment as a creative partner at the museum, were she alive today. Yet I respect her intellect and integrity enough to believe that she would not judge any work on name alone.”