SIR Cliff Richard's coat will attract visitors to an exhibition in the Bronte Parsonage Museum's new £70,000 display room.

Ballet costumes and stills from a 1920s silent movie are also among attractions at the new exhibition, A Passionate Response.

It looks at how the lives and works of the Bronte family have inspired other artists, writers and performers over the past 150 years.

The exhibition also showcases extensive improvements in the museum's Bonnell Room, which were supported with a £34,900 lottery grant. The Bronte Society provided the rest of the money for structural changes, new decor, carpeting, lighting and £45,000 of high-security display cases.

Museum director Mike Hill says the refurbishment will allow temporary exhibitions to be presented in modern, accessible and secure surroundings.

The previous dcor included oak panels and bronze-edged showcases around the walls and centre of the room.

Mr Hill says: "People in wheelchairs could get in easily, but couldn't see into the cases because they were too high up.

"We wanted to build something like a treasury because what we want to put in it are our crown jewels. Hopefully, people will be attracted into the room."

Mr Hill says display cases must now be more secure because items such as manuscripts can be worth many thousands of pounds.

The Bonnell Room marked the second grant to the Bronte Society from the Heritage Lottery Board in just 12 months.The society received funding towards the £50,000 cost of buying the Dreadful Dream letter written by Charlotte Bronte about the deaths of her siblings.

Mr Hill says: "Getting two grants must be pretty exceptional. I think we made out a strong case on both occasions. It was very clear local people had a pride in what was being done."

The latest exhibition displays several items from books, films, stage shows and TV series inspired by Bronte stories.

Museum curator Rachel Terry, who devised the exhibition with librarian Ann Dinsdale, says the intention is to provide an overview.

"We look back at what the Brontes have inspired in other creative people, and looking forward to what is to come.

"People are constantly inspired by their work, taking it into new forms, and the story of their lives appeals to people a lot."

The exhibition looks at many examples including biographies, prequels and sequels to the novels, fictionalised life stories .

Exhibits include a coat worn by Sir Cliff in his musical Heathcliff, costumes used by the Northern Ballet Theatre in their dance-drama The Brontes, and a "making of" video from the show.

The centrepiece is an album of production photos and stills from the 1920s silent movie of Wuthering Heights.

The Bronte Society has searched for many years for a copy of the film but has been unsuccessful.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.