{"id":25740,"date":"2021-01-25T14:35:02","date_gmt":"2021-01-25T14:35:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/?p=25740"},"modified":"2021-01-28T20:10:28","modified_gmt":"2021-01-28T20:10:28","slug":"richie-reviews-bridgerton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/2021\/01\/25\/richie-reviews-bridgerton\/","title":{"rendered":"Richie Reviews &#8211; Bridgerton"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"25740\" class=\"elementor elementor-25740\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-dfb012a elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"dfb012a\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-5c6b924\" data-id=\"5c6b924\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-656df05 elementor-widget elementor-widget-theme-post-featured-image\" data-id=\"656df05\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"theme-post-featured-image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-3cacff2 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"3cacff2\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-a5225f0\" data-id=\"a5225f0\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7ba3da7 elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"7ba3da7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-92c2540 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"92c2540\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>WARNING &#8211; MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3c660b3 elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"3c660b3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fb1601c elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"fb1601c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-18864fb elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"18864fb\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-b1d6df9\" data-id=\"b1d6df9\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-a0907de elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"a0907de\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-88cd0c3\" data-id=\"88cd0c3\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-60ae6df elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"60ae6df\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">\"Netflix shocks us into 2021 with a colourful drama that's one part soap, one part Downton and one part Game of Thrones\"<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a805798 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"a805798\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-37783f5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"37783f5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"650\" height=\"433\" src=\"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/3600-2400-5ea2fee4-6660-48dd-af9c-1801fb6127e6.jpg.gallery.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-25747\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/3600-2400-5ea2fee4-6660-48dd-af9c-1801fb6127e6.jpg.gallery.jpg 650w, https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/3600-2400-5ea2fee4-6660-48dd-af9c-1801fb6127e6.jpg.gallery-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">From left: Simon, Duke of Hastings (Reg\u00e9-Jean Page) and Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor) \u00a9 Netflix <\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a627350 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"a627350\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-caf839c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"caf839c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"letter-spacing: 0px;\">I&#8217;ll admit, I was dubious about diving straight into Bridgerton after seeing it&#8217;s trailer, but in the end, it was the reactions I was seeing across social media that made me decide to give it a go, rather than the actual press. It soon proved itself to be more than just a\u00a0 fanciful period drama.<\/span><\/p><p>Bridgerton is the latest Netflix original series, based on a series of novels by Julia Quinn and follows the exploits of the eponymous Bridgerton family, as well as the other members of high society in Regency era London. The show&#8217;s first season is a brightly lit alternative history drama which primarily sees Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor, pictured right) trying to find a suitable matrimonial match, whilst all the while avoiding proposals from unsuitable suitors and disarranging the arranged marriage attempts of her family. Simultaneously, Simon Basset, the new Duke of Hastings (Rege-Jean Page)<span style=\"letter-spacing: 0px;\">\u00a0is hastily trying to avoid the advances of the other young and eligible debutants on the social scene for his own private reasons. Inevitably the two meet, and plot together to achieve both of their goals.<\/span><\/p><p>Make no mistake, Bridgerton isn&#8217;t a single plot pony, the rich diverse cast of characters offers plenty of ebbing and varying storylines, including but not limited to money, scandal, sex and sexuality. Regrettably the plots do play out in an inconsistent fashion, with some fleshed out and almost fully realised, and other, more potentially rich sub-plots being cut short before they&#8217;ve even begun. Nonetheless, the stories do conclude, albeit with some having more room for exploration. Fortunately the series has been renewed for season 2, so perhaps we may see more of the secondary characters in the second outing.<\/p><p>The eight episodes are nicely framed by the enigmatic Lady Whistledown (Dame Julie Andrews), the almost-omnipotent author of the high society newsletter, who serves as the narrator of the series as well as being a mysterious character and member of high-society in her own right, reporting and relaying gossip and events to the viewer and her peers. Bridgerton uniquely makes the narrator both known to the wider cast and a personable lense for the viewer to gain some insight, which admittedly was a refreshing plot device in the show, and her identity even turns into a storyline in itself.\u00a0<span style=\"letter-spacing: 0px;\">That said, I felt the heightened language employed by Bridgerton offered the perfect opportunity to utilise Dame Julie&#8217;s regal narration to greater effect, but unfortunately it wasn&#8217;t taken advantage of. All that was needed was a few high society profanities and tasteful euphemisms in her script and we would&#8217;ve been introduced to something quite special &#8211; imagine Mary Poppins talking posh smut.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p>I cannot fault the casting or the performances of the actors. Both Daphne and Simon are as believable as they are nice to look at, and likewise the wider cast benefits from more recognisable talent like Ben Miller (Armstrong &amp; Miller, Johnny English, Death in Paradise) and Jonathan Bailey (Broadchurch), who are equally enjoyable to watch as the money-troubled Baron Featherington and\u00a0 Anthony Bridgerton respectively. Adjoa Andoh was surprisingly likeable in her role as Hasting&#8217;s mentor Lady Danbury, and I was stumped when I realised I was rooting for her, particularly when as a teenager I loathed her character<span style=\"letter-spacing: 0px;\">\u00a0Francine in Doctor Who, mother of companion Martha Jones. Definitely a credit to the actor. Indeed the breakout star will be indeed be\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 16px; text-align: center; letter-spacing: 0px;\">Reg\u00e9-Jean Page, who, if social media is any indication, could very well be the next period-drama heart-throb &#8211; someone call Aidan Turner and tell him to make another series of Poldark quick! For me though, the highlight of the season has to be Kathryn Drysdale (Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, The Windsors) who shines as Genevieve Delacroix, who to the public is a accommodating French dressmaker, but among close friends reverts to her native northern accent, a truly amusing trait that Drysdale switches between effortlessly.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-size: 16px; text-align: center; letter-spacing: 0px;\">All in all, Netlfix shocks us into 2012 with a colourful drama that&#8217;s one part soap, one part Downton and one part Game of Thrones, if only for the carnal behaviour of the aristocracy. With its fantastic costume design and universally watchable cast, I&#8217;ll definitely watching season 2, but please don&#8217;t add in any more beautiful people, my eyes can&#8217;t take it.<\/span><span style=\"letter-spacing: 0px;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"letter-spacing: 0px;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9ca8f1e elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"9ca8f1e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Bridgerton-Review-Score-300x300.png\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium wp-image-25786\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Bridgerton-Review-Score-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Bridgerton-Review-Score-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Bridgerton-Review-Score-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Bridgerton-Review-Score-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Bridgerton-Review-Score-1140x1140.png 1140w, https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Bridgerton-Review-Score-75x75.png 75w, https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Bridgerton-Review-Score.png 1198w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-18b3ac5 elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"18b3ac5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>WARNING &#8211; MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD &#8220;Netflix shocks us into 2021 with a colourful drama that&#8217;s one part soap, one part Downton and one part Game of Thrones&#8221; From left: Simon, Duke of Hastings (Reg\u00e9-Jean Page) and Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor) \u00a9 Netflix I&#8217;ll admit, I was dubious about diving straight into Bridgerton after seeing it&#8217;s trailer, but in the end, it was the reactions I was seeing across social media that made me decide to give it a go, rather than the actual press. It soon proved itself to be more than just a\u00a0 fanciful period drama. Bridgerton is the latest Netflix original series, based on a series of novels by Julia Quinn and follows the exploits of the eponymous Bridgerton family, as well as the other members of high society in Regency era London. The show&#8217;s first season is a brightly lit alternative history drama which primarily sees Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor, pictured right) trying to find a suitable matrimonial match, whilst all the while avoiding proposals from unsuitable suitors and disarranging the arranged marriage attempts of her family. Simultaneously, Simon Basset, the new Duke of Hastings (Rege-Jean Page)\u00a0is hastily trying to avoid the advances of the other young and eligible debutants on the social scene for his own private reasons. Inevitably the two meet, and plot together to achieve both of their goals. Make no mistake, Bridgerton isn&#8217;t a single plot pony, the rich diverse cast of characters offers plenty of ebbing and varying storylines, including but not limited to money, scandal, sex and sexuality. Regrettably the plots do play out in an inconsistent fashion, with some fleshed out and almost fully realised, and other, more potentially rich sub-plots being cut short before they&#8217;ve even begun. Nonetheless, the stories do conclude, albeit with some having more room for exploration. Fortunately the series has been renewed for season 2, so perhaps we may see more of the secondary characters in the second outing. The eight episodes are nicely framed by the enigmatic Lady Whistledown (Dame Julie Andrews), the almost-omnipotent author of the high society newsletter, who serves as the narrator of the series as well as being a mysterious character and member of high-society in her own right, reporting and relaying gossip and events to the viewer and her peers. Bridgerton uniquely makes the narrator both known to the wider cast and a personable lense for the viewer to gain some insight, which admittedly was a refreshing plot device in the show, and her identity even turns into a storyline in itself.\u00a0That said, I felt the heightened language employed by Bridgerton offered the perfect opportunity to utilise Dame Julie&#8217;s regal narration to greater effect, but unfortunately it wasn&#8217;t taken advantage of. All that was needed was a few high society profanities and tasteful euphemisms in her script and we would&#8217;ve been introduced to something quite special &#8211; imagine Mary Poppins talking posh smut.\u00a0 I cannot fault the casting or the performances of the actors. Both Daphne and Simon are as believable as they are nice to look at, and likewise the wider cast benefits from more recognisable talent like Ben Miller (Armstrong &amp; Miller, Johnny English, Death in Paradise) and Jonathan Bailey (Broadchurch), who are equally enjoyable to watch as the money-troubled Baron Featherington and\u00a0 Anthony Bridgerton respectively. Adjoa Andoh was surprisingly likeable in her role as Hasting&#8217;s mentor Lady Danbury, and I was stumped when I realised I was rooting for her, particularly when as a teenager I loathed her character\u00a0Francine in Doctor Who, mother of companion Martha Jones. Definitely a credit to the actor. Indeed the breakout star will be indeed be\u00a0Reg\u00e9-Jean Page, who, if social media is any indication, could very well be the next period-drama heart-throb &#8211; someone call Aidan Turner and tell him to make another series of Poldark quick! For me though, the highlight of the season has to be Kathryn Drysdale (Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, The Windsors) who shines as Genevieve Delacroix, who to the public is a accommodating French dressmaker, but among close friends reverts to her native northern accent, a truly amusing trait that Drysdale switches between effortlessly. All in all, Netlfix shocks us into 2012 with a colourful drama that&#8217;s one part soap, one part Downton and one part Game of Thrones, if only for the carnal behaviour of the aristocracy. With its fantastic costume design and universally watchable cast, I&#8217;ll definitely watching season 2, but please don&#8217;t add in any more beautiful people, my eyes can&#8217;t take it.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25740","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-richie-reviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25740","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25740"}],"version-history":[{"count":53,"href":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25740\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25995,"href":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25740\/revisions\/25995"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25740"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25740"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/richiemacey.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25740"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}