Has ‘Bridgerton’ lost its bite?

Life and Art from FT Weekend

Forhecz Topher

Tv & Film, Arts, Society & Culture

4.6 • 601 Ratings

🗓️ 31 May 2024

⏱️ 22 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The spicy Netflix series Bridgerton is currently the most-watched show globally on Netflix, after the first half of season three dropped this month. The period drama, produced by Shonda Rhimes, came out in 2020 with some wink-to-camera self- awareness. But this season feels more earnest. Why is the show so popular, and what are we craving from period dramas now? Lilah is joined by the FT’s US financial editor and historical romance expert Brooke Masters and work and careers writer/TV buff Emma Jacobs, to chat through it.

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We love hearing from you. Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap. We’re on X @lifeandartpod and on email at [email protected]. We are grateful for reviews on Apple and Spotify. And please share this episode with your friends!

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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):

– The first 4 episodes of Bridgerton season 3 are available now on Netflix. The next four will air on June 13.

– The FT’s review of Bridgerton is here: https://on.ft.com/452Gs45

– Listen to our episode with Brooke Masters on Jane Austen here, or by searching ‘Jane Austen, forever’ wherever you listen.

– Brooke Masters is on X @brookeamasters. Emma Jacobs is @emmavj

More or Less:

– Emma wants to see fewer recipes with maple syrup on Instagram. Read more on the ‘maple-pocalypse’ here

– Brooke wants fewer musicals based on classic films. Our Mean Girls episode is here

– Lilah wants more cooking with eggplant 🍆. Her eggplant dip recipe: grill the eggplant whole, to an inch of its life (no tautness!). Grill some garlic, too. Peel the eggplant, chop it into cubes, add the garlic (minced), chopped fresh white onion, lots of salt, too much lemon, good olive oil, and some parsley. Let it sit for a bit, then eat!

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Life and Art from FT Weekend.
0:02.2	I'm Lila Raptopoulos and this is our Friday chat show.
0:06.0	Today we are talking about the spicy Netflix period drama Bridgerton,
0:11.2	which is currently, as of recording, the number one most popular show streaming on Netflix globally.
0:17.8	Bridgeton is set in London during the Regency period around the 1810s. Each season
0:22.6	follows several families through the social season where a young, marriageable gentry
0:26.7	go to balls and flirt and try desperately to find a match. The show is produced by Shonda Rhymes
0:32.2	and based on the Julia Quinn novels of the same name. It's been split into two parts. The first
0:37.3	half of season three has
0:38.4	recently dropped, and the second half will drop on June 13th. This season is anchored around the bookish,
0:44.4	uncool Penelope Featherington, played by Nicola Coughlin. She's in her third season looking for a
0:49.3	husband, which makes her practically a spinster, and she has agreed to get help from her very
0:53.8	handsome childhood friend, Colin Bridgerton. The problem is, Penelope has been in love makes her practically a spinster, and she has agreed to get help from her very handsome
0:54.1	childhood friend Colin Bridgerton. The problem is Penelope has been in love with Colin for years.
0:59.7	If the husband is what we seek, let me help you. Are we not friends?
1:05.6	There is much to say about this season and why this show is so popular, so why don't we get
1:10.5	into it? I'm Lila, and I'm about
1:12.8	to get crushed by a hot air balloon to the sound of a string quartet version of cheap thrills.
1:18.0	With me here in New York, we have Lady Whistledown herself, the FTs U.S. financial editor
1:23.3	and our resident expert on historical romance fiction, Brookmasters.
1:27.8	Hi, Brooke.
1:28.5	Hey, Lila.
	...

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