27 Things You Didn’t Know About Bridget Jones

bridget jones

by Katie Rosseinsky |
Updated on

Yes, you've read the books from cover to cover more times than you'd care to remember, and end up watching every time the films pop up on ITV2, but it's a truth universally acknowledged that the Bridget Jones stories will never, ever get old.

To celebrate the return of our favourite fictional everywoman for her third big-screen outing, Bridget Jones's Baby, we've trawled the archives to bring you the best bits of Bridget trivia...

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27 Things You Didn't Know About Bridget Jones

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1. The fictional publishing house that Bridget works for is called Pemberley Press

Pemberley is the name of Darcy's family estate in Pride and Prejudice.

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2. Renée Zellweger interned at a publishing house to prepare for the role...

The actress did work experience with Picador in London for just under a month, and went incognito as 'Bridget Cavendish,' the sister of Jonathan Cavendish, a friend of the company's chairman - and a producer on the film.

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3. She kept a picture of Jim Carrey - her then boyfriend - on her desk

Her colleagues were bemused, but were too British to say anything about it.

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4. During filming, Renée smoked herbal cigarettes instead of tobacco ones

Because attempting Bridget's smoking habit IRL wouldn't have been the healthiest option...

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5. Bridget's friends are based on author Helen Fielding's own friendship circle

'Jude' is journalist Tracey MacLeod, while 'Shazza' is based on Sharon Macguire, who ended up directing two out of the three Bridget films.

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6. Fielding also persuaded author Salman Rushdie to cameo

An old friend of Rushdie, she asked if the author was willing to 'make a fool of himself.' He ended up appearing as a guest at the 'Kafka's Motorbike' launch party, where Bridget asks him for directions to the toilets.

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7. The infamous fight scene between Mark Darcy and Daniel Cleaver was completely unchoreographed

Colin Firth told Buzzfeed, 'Hugh and I in rehearsals rebelled against the whole idea of a stuntman [...] So it was unchoreographed – that was just Hugh and I fighting like we actually would.'

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8. However, they brought the stuntmen back to fly through the restaurant window

'They wouldn't let us do the window. Insurance gets involved with that sort of thing,' Firth added.

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9. Jim Broadbent (Bridget's Dad), Gemma Jones (her mum) and Emma Thompson (her gynaecologist) have all played Hogwarts staff in the Harry Potter films...

Professor Slughorn, Madame Pomfrey and Professor Trelawney, respectively.

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10. Shirley Henderson, aka Bridget's pal Jude, plays Moaning Myrtle in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Coincidentally, both characters spend much of their screen time crying in bathrooms.

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11. Renée Zellweger was nominated for an Best Actress Academy Award for her performance

She was beaten to it by Halle Berry, who won for Monster's Ball.

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12. The Bridget Jones series is the first film trilogy to have only female directors

Sharon Macguire took on directing duties for the first and third films, with Beeban Kidron filling in for the second.

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13. Renée Zellweger worked with voice coach Barbara Berkery to help hone her British accent

Berkery also worked with Gwyneth Paltrow for Shakespeare In Love.

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14. Hugh Grant didn't hear her real (American) accent until after the film had wrapped

'Not once did she stop speaking with that accent, until the wrap party,' he told Cinema.com.

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15. Actress Toni Colette declined the lead role, while Kate Winslet was considered 'too young'

Colette was busy starring on Broadway at the time of filming, while Winslet was only 25.

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16. Renée was 32 years old when the first film was made - the same age as Bridget in the books

Some things are just meant to be...

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17. Sally Phillips auditioned to play Bridget, but was turned down

She clearly made an impression on the producers, though, and was offered the role of Shazza.

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18. When the third film was slated to begin production in 2012, Sally had to turn it down due to her real-life pregnancy

The delay in filming actually worked in her favour, allowing her to eventually reprise her role in Bridget Jones's Baby.

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19. Hugh Grant only signed up to the film once he knew that Richard Curtis was also on board

'I kept saying, "It's not working. Just get Richard Curtis to come in and help re-write it,"' he told Cinema.com. 'Eventually they did, and as soon as Richard came on board, I signed on the dotted line.'

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20. Wrotham Park in Hertfordshire was used as the Darcy family home in the first film

It's also been used as a filming location for Gosford Park, the BBC adaptation of Sense and Sensibility and Kingsman: The Secret Service (which also stars Colin Firth).

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21. Mark's colleague - and Bridget's love rival - Natasha is played by Embeth Davidtz, who plays Miss Honey in Matilda

Sweet, kind Miss Honey becomes ice queen Natasha. The power of acting.

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22. The snowy scenes from the end of the first film were actually filmed during summer time

We don't know what to believe any more...

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23. Both Colin Firth and Hugh Grant are mentioned by name in the first novel

Colin appears in October 24th's entry, with Hugh referred to on August 16th.

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24. Colin also crops up as a fictional version of himself in The Edge Of Reason

The film-makers decided not to leave this scene in the screen-adaptation, for obvious reasons.

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25. The first film's screenplay was co-written by Andrew Davies - the man behind the infamous, Colin Firth-starring BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice

Bridget owns a video of the series in the novel - and Firth's casting as (Mark) Darcy was a very successful 'in-joke' on the producers' behalf.

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26. Bridget Jones is now the 21st century's first and only rom-com trilogy

It's the only three-part rom-com series in which all films have starred the same lead actress, and all have been released in cinemas.

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27. The Bridget Jones films were, bizarrely, blamed for a decline in the sales of Chardonnay

According to wine writer Oz Clarke, 'Before Bridget Jones, Chardonnay was really sexy. After, people said, "God, not in my bar"'. We're sure that Bridget would have some choice words for him...

READ MORE: BAFTAs 2020: Hugh Grant Congratulates Renée Zellweger With 'Well Done Jones'

READ MORE: A Fourth Bridget Jones Movie Could Totally Be Happening

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