Jane Austen was the master of weaving a subtle undercurrent of wit and satire gently through her novels.

But it appears that subtlety may have been lost on the Governor of the Bank of England, who has been accused of failing to understand the true meaning of a quote used on the front of the new £10 note.

Mark Carney was forced to defend the use of a line from Miss Bingley, a character in the Austen novel Pride and Prejudice, who said: "I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading!"

Critics were quick to point out that as Miss Bingley's character had no interest in books, the quote was not intended to be taken literally and was in fact meant sarcastically.