Pride and Prejudice in Derbyshire: discover Jane Austen's book from Chatsworth to Colin Firth's lake scene

Among Jane Austen fans, January 28 is known as Pride and Prejudice Day, celebrating the novel of manners and romantic manoeuvres which is said to have sold 20million copies and is regularly ranked among the most popular works of fiction of all time.

Most of Austen’s life was spent in the south of England, and the Bennet family of the book hail from Hertfordshire, but a key turning point in the plot occurs when Elizabeth Bennet takes a trip to Derbyshire where she finally begins to realise her feelings for the dashing Mr Darcy.

Over the centuries there has been some debate among scholars about whether or not Austen spent any formative time in the county that might have influenced her writing, but a number of real-world locations are dotted throughout the book, and other imagined places bear a striking likeness to places we know and love.

Love Derby? Us too! So sign up for our newsletter now

In Austen’s time, the county was earning a new reputation as a wealthy heartland of the Industrial Revolution and a visitor destination for those with the means to travel, but many would still agree with one particular line of the book today: “There is not a finer county in England than Derbyshire.”

Reality and imagination have been entwined ever since, with film and television adaptations revisiting to the county and some of its most famous landmarks to shoot on location and showcase the beauty of our local landscapes to audiences around the world.

Here are just a few of the essential sights on a tour of Austen’s Derbyshire.