“Bridgerton,” a period drama, shot to fame after its Netflix debut.Julie Andrews provides the narration for the show, which is based on a number of Regency romance books. The Julia Quinn Regency romance books that serve as the inspiration for the Netflix series each chronicle the love life of a different Bridgerton sibling. Here are 10 interesting facts about Bridgerton even the biggest fans of the show didn’t know:
The filming of the show was halted by the Queen of England.
The show’s creator revealed on Twitter(opens in new tab) that a time limit was imposed on the production of the episode’s pivotal scene, in which the Duke and Daphne argue their case before Queen Charlotte because Queen Elizabeth—yes, the real Queen needed Lancaster House in London to host an event.
Queen Charlotte is absent from Julia Quinn’s novels.
“Queen Charlotte is the biggest new character and she’s fantastic in every way. I go back and forth between: ‘Wow, I wish I’d put her in the books.’ And: ‘I’m glad I didn’t put her in the books because I wouldn’t have done her as great as they do her here,'” Quinn said in an interview with Town and Country.
There were no Black protagonists in any of Julia Quinn’s books.
While Bridgerton has garnered attention for its diverse casting, Quinn’s books make no mention of race. Chris Van Dusen, the show’s creator, and Shonda Rhimes were responsible for choosing a cast that represented diversity.
Queen Charlotte might actually be a Black woman.
The historical controversy over Queen Charlotte’s nationality has been entirely rekindled by the hype around Bridgerton. Many people think that the Queen consort, who served as monarch from 1761 to 1818, was the first person of mixed race in the British royal line and had African ancestry. She is said to be “directly derived from Margarita de Castro y Sousa, a Black branch of the Portuguese Royal House,” according to PBS’s Frontline, which referenced a number of significant historical images as support.
The narrator of the series is Julie Andrews.
Lady Whistledown’s voice is that of Academy Award winning actress Julie Andrews, which explains why it sounds so familiar. After receiving the scripts, the 85-year-old apparently fell in love with the role and recorded the entire series digitally from a New York studio.
Audrey Hepburn was a stylist for Daphne.
Anywhere, those curled bangs would be recognisable to Old Hollywood lovers. “When I did Daphne’s first fittings she had these amazing eyebrows and the looks that we started doing reminded me of Audrey Hepburn,” hair and makeup artist Marc Pilcher told Insider.
Beyoncé was a hairstyle inspiration for Queen Charlotte.
Queen B gave some fashion advice to Queen C. “When I researched Queen Charlotte and found out that she was of African descent, it gave me so much more scope to create her beautiful looks,” Marc Pilcher told Vogue.
Regé-Jean Page left after season 1 due to “creative differences.”
Even though he parted ways amicably, the actor wasn’t happy with the path Shonda Rhimes and her crew had taken his character. According to a source who spoke to Page Six, his role in season 2 “would have maintained him a player but not the primary feature of the programme.” Later, he told Variety that he had loved his “one-season arc,” which had given him the opportunity to “do my part and then the Bridgerton family goes on.”
The Duke of Hastings was the role that Jonathan Bailey initially tried out for.
Jonathan instead earned the role of Anthony Bridgerton after speaking with the show’s creators and producers. “It wasn’t until I was talking to the production company and Chris Van Dusen, the showrunner, and at the end of the meeting we’d spoken about family, and men in society, and women in society, and our own personal experiences,” he told Oprah Daily.
The Althorp Estate of Princess Diana served as a model for The Bridgerton’s residence.
The Bridgerton’s home was inspired by Princess Diana’s Althorp Estate. “The interior of Bridgerton House was inspired by my visit to Althorp when I was developing the show. Elegance. Opulence. And that #staircase,” show creator Chris Van Dusen said on Twitter