Jane Austen's enduring legacy lies in her relevance as a foil for modern mores

For some, it will be enough merely to re-read Persuasion, and thence to cry yet again at Captain Wentworth's declaration of utmost love for Anne Elliot.

But during the many and various celebrations in 2025 that will mark the 250th anniversary of the birth of Jane Austen, others, it seems, are planning to take a rather more full-hearted approach.

In Bath, where Austen took up residence in 1801, a series of costume balls are to be staged. At Chawton in Hampshire, where she lived with her mother and sister Cassandra from 1809, festivals will be devoted to Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility and Emma.

Austen died in Winchester in 1817, and by September a lifesize statue of the writer by the sculptor Martin Jennings will be installed in front of the city's cathedral. It is reputed to have cost £100,000 ($126,000).

Less expensive by far is the Regency ball that will be held in the cathedral's nave in May.