Facts About the Cast of Bridgerton

 I recently binged Bridgerton for the first time, and certainly not for the last. I can only really say that I loved it and I was in love with all of the characters, because I refuse to give spoilers. 😉 But I thought it could be fun to write a post featuring some facts about the amazing actors and actresses that contributed to the show.

Let's start out with a few facts about the Duke of Hastings himself, Regé Jean-Page. 

1. Born in the UK, he grew up in Zimbabwe before moving back to London in his teens for schooling.

2. During his teen years he and his brother formed a punk band, and to complete the faze Regé used to dye his hair various colors. His most frequent choices were blue, green, and purple.

3. He attended Drama Centre London, where many famous actors and actresses before him had studied. Some of the famous students on that list include, Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan, and Emilia Clarke.

Next stop, his leading lady Phoebe Dynevor who played Daphne Bridgerton.

1. Phoebe's acting talent runs in the family. Her mother, Sally Dynevor, has been playing Sally Webster on Coronation Street since 1986.

2. She's worked with some pretty famous people pre-Bridgerton. She was in Younger with Hilary Duff and Sutton Foster, and was in Snatch with Rupert Grint.

3. She is a fan of Grey's Anatomy and Scandal, and always thought it would be amazing to have the chance to play a female Shondaland character. Looks like she got her wish.

Next up is Jonathan Bailey who played Anthony Bridgerton (who is unofficially the best bro ever).

1. He won an award for acting... in a musical! He won a 2019 Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical for his role as Jamie in a revival of Company.

2. He originally read a few of Simon's lines, but it was suggested that he audition for Anthony. Props to whoever suggested that, I can't imagine anyone else as Anthony.

3. The first Julia Quinn book he read was The Viscount Who Loved Me, which is about his character Anthony. He read it right after he read the three scripts provided by Shondaland.

Coming next is my personal favorite Bridgerton, Eloise who is played by Claudia Jessie.

1. She enjoys yoga, and you might recognize her favorite online yoga instructor, Yoga with Adriene. She says that Adriene was suggested to her by a friend, and she got hooked.

2. She says her favorite time of day is the early morning, while she says her character's favorite time of day would probably be the evening time. 

3. She loved playing Eloise because of how funny the character is since comedy is her "greatest love". Not surprisingly one of her favorite TV genres is also comedy, although she loves documentaries as well.

Now let's move on to the Featherington family with our girl Penny, played by Nicola Coughlan.

1. She does not age, and I'm not even being over dramatic. I thought she was early twenties when I watched the show, but she is actually thirty-four. She attributes her young looking appearance to "genetics and prosecco".

2. Now for the next bombshell, her hair isn't really red. Penny's hair is just a wig, Nicola's hair is blonde in real life.

3. She loves reality TV shows (don't we all). She was even in a couple herself, most recently she appeared in the U.K. gameshow, Taskmaster. In the December of 2019 she joined her Derry Girls costars on the Great British Baking Show.

And last but not least, it's time for our honorable mentions.

1. Adjoa Andoh, who played Lady Danbury, has been licensed as a Reader (a lay preacher) in the Church of England since 2009.

2. Luke Newton, Colin Bridgerton, played in a Disney Channel series called The Lodge. His character was Ben Evans.

3. Ruby Barker, Marina Thompson, has a dancing background. During her childhood she attended Elizabeth Murray School of Dance in Glasgow every Saturday.

4. Ruth Gemmell, Lady Violet, went to the same school as Hugh Bonneville. They both trained at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London.

5. Polly Walker, Lady Portia Featherington, attended ballet school and intended to be a dancer but an injury forced her to change direction.

And our final fact is that none of the cast knew that Julie Andrews narrated the show as Lady Whistledown until the rest of the world found out.