Bronte original sold for £114,000

The 1847 first edition was published under a male pseudonym

A rare first edition of Emily Bronte's novel Wuthering Heights has been sold at auction for £114,000 - more than twice the estimated price.

The 1847 edition of Bronte's tragic love story had been expected to fetch between £30,000 and £50,000.

A spokeswoman for auction house Bonhams said it had been bought by a private client and would be staying in the UK.

The book - the only novel Bronte wrote - was first published pseudonymously under the male alias Ellis Bell.

Bronte - who died from tuberculosis in 1848 at the age of 30 - used the name because of fears she would face prejudice as a female writer.

The novel has inspired a number of film versions, as well as a 1978 hit by singer Kate Bush.

Previous owner Anne Reid had been given the book as a child by her grandfather. It had been in her family for four generations.

Ms Reid, who is studying at the London Art Academy, intends to use the funds to realise a long-held ambition to become an artist.