London ( CNN ) -- It 's a simple love story : Girl meets guy , it 's hate at first sight , and then they fall in love . `` Pride and Prejudice , '' the original rom-com , turns 200 today , with fans around the world celebrating the story that launched a whole industry . The tale of feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet and her relationship with the haughty , brooding Darcy is the stuff of spinoffs aplenty : Even if you 've never read the original , chances are you 've seen one of its many remakes , from Bridget Jones to Bollywood , zombie thrillers to murder mysteries . But Jane Austen 's best-known and most-loved novel , first published on January 28 , 1813 , and viewed by the author as her `` own darling child '' was n't an immediate hit . `` It was very well received , and it made money , but it was n't a massive bestseller in her day , '' says Louise West , curator of the Jane Austen House Museum at Chawton , in Hampshire . Instead it became a slow-burn success , turning its creator -- after her early death in 1817 -- into a literary star . In his recent book `` What Matters in Jane Austen ? '' expert John Mullan claims that only Shakespeare and Dickens `` can rival her continuing , international appeal . '' Cambridge University English professor Janet Todd puts Austen 's enduring appeal down to `` the mixture of simplicity and complexity -- her work looks so simple , so ordinary , and yet underneath , the more you look , the more you see , and the more complicated it becomes . `` Austen is one of the very few real crossover writers , who are popular with the public and also feted by critics and academia -- it is very rare . '' `` It 's not just any old love story , '' says West . `` It is also brilliantly written . Austen was the first truly modern novelist , and 'Pride and Prejudice ' is full of irony , craft , careful plotting -- you read it for the story , but you get all these other layers of richness too . '' But she says the secret of the story 's success is down to its protagonists , Elizabeth and Darcy , `` two terribly attractive characters who spark off each other in a very dynamic and sexy way , '' and to its heroine , in particular . `` 'Pride and Prejudice ' is the book that brings more people here than any other , '' says West . `` They come looking for Elizabeth Bennet -- she is the character women aspire to be , she got the fairy story , and they want it to be real . '' The book 's bicentenary is being marked throughout the year with a series of events , starting with an international `` Pride and Prejudice Readathon '' at the Jane Austen Centre in Bath on Monday , and including exhibitions and an outdoor theater production in London . A conference celebrating the anniversary will also be held at Lucy Cavendish College , Cambridge University , featuring everything from scholarly lectures to a Regency Ball -- and talks by figures including veteran mystery writer P.D . James , who turned `` Pride and Prejudice '' into a detective story in her `` sequel , '' `` Death Comes to Pemberley . '' In Jane Austen 's footsteps : Discover novelist 's England . Over the course of two centuries , what began as a simple love story , sold to a publisher for Â£110 at the time , is now a global industry worth billions of dollars : Everything from Hollywood movies to bestselling books , including 2009 parody `` Pride and Prejudice and Zombies , '' and even themed weddings . `` It is a multi-billion pound business , because nobody has to pay any royalties to the author , '' explains solicitor Mark Stephens . `` They can just go back to the original text and remake programs , and as a result they 're much cheaper to make . '' A string of hugely popular adaptations , from TV miniseries to big budget Hollywood versions has helped ensure the novel remains popular with generation after generation . West said the most notable boost came from the BBC 's 1995 version , starring Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth , and -- famously -- Colin Firth as Darcy , complete with wet shirt . `` That had a major impact for us , '' she says . `` At the time we had about 25,000 visitors a year , and that doubled almost overnight -- we had 58,000 visitors that year . `` Everyone fell in love with Colin Firth . I do n't want to go on about him -- though I could , of course , '' she jokes . `` He was n't the only thing people loved about that version , but I 'd be lying if I said he had n't had a major impact . '' David Lassman , of the Jane Austen Centre in Bath , agrees . `` The 1995 production really ignited the whole Jane Austen 'industry ' . '' And it 's not just about the cash : Some fans say `` Pride and Prejudice '' has changed their life . Austen herself wondered if the novel was `` too light and bright and sparkling , '' but for many it is just this uplifting tone which has `` taught them to hope . '' `` Our visitors ' book is full of comments from people who 've come from around the world , telling us what 'Pride and Prejudice ' means to them , '' says West . `` They range from the usual 'It 's my favourite book , ' and ' I love Darcy , ' to 'This book has saved me at times of great trial , ' she says , adding : `` Austen was even prescribed to soldiers in World War I , to help them get over shell shock . '' For Lassman , the timelessness of `` Pride and Prejudice '' is key : `` Things change , the world is modernized , but deep down we still want the same things : Love , and happiness . '' Gurinder Chadha , director of 2005 Bollywood remake `` Bride & Prejudice '' says the story is universal -- whatever the setting . `` Jane Austen said that every woman wants to find their Darcy , '' says Chadha . `` They do n't want to compromise to to be accepted by that Darcy , they want to be their own woman . It 's a romantic desire that we all have . It 's the ultimate love story . '' And that , it would seem , is ... a truth universally acknowledged . CNN 's Erin McLaughlin contributed to this report .
Jane Austen 's `` Pride and Prejudice '' was published on 28 January , 1813 . The novel is a sequel to the original story of Elizabeth Bennet ( who had been married in 1811 ) and Mr. Darcy ( who had been engaged in 1814 ). Story has inspired a Bollywood remake , a murder mystery , and even a zombie horror .