Bridget Jones
Bridget Jones | |
---|---|
First appearance | reporter |
Family | Colin Jones (father) Pamela Jones (mother) |
Spouse | Mark Darcy |
Children | William "Billy" Darcy Mabel Darcy |
Nationality | British |
Residence | London |
Bridget Rose Jones is a fictional character created by British writer
Both novels were adapted for film in 2001 and 2004, starring Renée Zellweger as Bridget Jones, and Hugh Grant and Colin Firth as the men in her life: Daniel Cleaver and Mark Darcy, respectively. After Fielding had ceased to work for The Daily Telegraph in late 1998, the feature began again in The Independent on 4 August 2005 and finished in June 2006. Helen Fielding released a third novel in 2013 (Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, which is set 14 years after the events of the second novel) and a fourth in 2016 (Bridget Jones's Baby: The Diaries, where Bridget finds herself unexpectedly pregnant without being certain who the father is).
"Bridget Jones" is hailed as a British cultural icon and was named on the 2016 Woman's Hour Power List as one of seven women judged to have had the biggest impact on women's lives over the past 70 years.[1]
Plot summary
Original column and novelizations
The plot of the first novel is loosely based on Pride and Prejudice.
Bridget Jones is a
In the two novels and screen adaptations, Bridget's mother is bored with her life as a housewife in the country and leaves Bridget's father. Bridget repeatedly flirts with her boss, Daniel Cleaver. A successful barrister named Mark Darcy also keeps popping into Bridget's life, being extremely awkward, and sometimes coming off a bit rude. After Bridget and Mark reach an understanding of each other and find a sort of happiness together, she gains some self-confidence and dramatically cuts down on her alcohol and cigarette consumption. However, Bridget's obsession with self-help books plus several misunderstandings cannot keep the couple together forever.
Return to the Independent
The new Independent column was set in the then-present day of 2005 and 2006, with references being made to events such as
The column is continued into 2006. In the last entry, Bridget Jones gave birth to a baby boy, fathered by Daniel Cleaver, and moved in with him.[6] However, Mark was not entirely out of the picture, as he previously suggested that he would like to adopt the child.[7] The column finished with the note, "Bridget is giving every attention to the care of her newborn son – and is too busy to keep up her Diary for the time being."[6]
History
Original column
In the mid-'90s, Charles Leadbeater, at the time the features editor of the English newspaper The Independent, offered Helen Fielding, then a journalist on The Independent on Sunday, a weekly column about urban life in London designed to appeal to young professional women. Fielding accepted and Bridget Jones was born on 28 February 1995.[8] The instantaneous popularity of the columns led to publication of the first book, Bridget Jones's Diary, in 1996.
The column appeared regularly every Wednesday on the pages of The Independent for almost three years: the last one was published on 10 September 1997. A couple of months later, on 15 November 1997, Helen Fielding resumed her weekly diary in The Daily Telegraph.[9] Fielding ceased to work for The Daily Telegraph on 19 December 1998.
Novelizations
The column was made into a novel in 1996, Bridget Jones's Diary. The plot is very loosely based on Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Critics assert that Fielding's book arguably began the popular fiction movement known as chick lit. The second book, The Edge of Reason, was published on 1998, and was based on the plot of another of Austen's novels, Persuasion.
Fielding named the character of Mark Darcy after the Pride and Prejudice character
A third book was published in October 2013, titled Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy. The novel is set in present-day London; Bridget is 51, still keeping a diary, but is also immersed in texting and experimenting with social media.
Return to The Independent
The feature began again in The Independent on 4 August 2005 with a "Sunday 31 July" entry. A book containing the original columns for 1995 was given away with the paper the following Saturday. This relaunch of the column is also printed in the Irish Independent. The International Herald Tribune reviewed the new column rather favourably, commenting that Fielding's satire was in good form.[3]
Connections to Pride and Prejudice
Helen Fielding (as Bridget Jones) wrote of her love of the
Pride and Prejudice screenwriter Andrew Davies collaborated on the screenplays for the 2001 and 2004 Bridget Jones films, which would show Crispin Bonham-Carter (Mr Bingley in Pride and Prejudice) and Lucy Robinson (Mrs Hurst) in minor roles. The self-referential in-joke between the projects intrigued Colin Firth and he accepted the role of Mark Darcy,[15] as it gave him an opportunity to ridicule and liberate himself from his Pride and Prejudice character.[20] Film critic James Berardinelli would later state that Firth "plays this part [of Mark Darcy] exactly as he played the earlier role, making it evident that the two Darcys are essentially the same".[21] The producers never found a solution to incorporate the Jones Firth interview in the second film but shot a spoof interview with Firth as himself and Renée Zellweger staying in-character as Bridget Jones after a day's wrap. The scene is available as a deleted scene on DVD.[22]
Adaptations
Screen
The first novel was turned into a
Musical
Lily Allen wrote a musical based on the novel, which was 'workshopped' in London with a cast including Sheridan Smith in the title role. Although a full production was anticipated for some time, Allen has since said she doubts it will 'see the light of day'.
References
- ^ "Margaret Thatcher tops Woman's Hour Power List", BBC News (Arts & Entertainment), 14 December 2016.
- ^ Jones, Bridget (Fielding, Helen). "Bridget Jones's Diary – Monday 23 January". The Independent.
- ^ a b James, Caryn (20 August 2005). "Bridget suffers through a new serial". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 2008-06-22.
- ^ Jones, Bridget (Fielding, Helen). "Bridget Jones's Diary – Wednesday 17 August". The Independent.
- ^ "Bridget Jones back in new diary". BBC News. 4 August 2005. Retrieved 2008-06-22.
- ^ a b Jones, Bridget (Fielding, Helen). "Bridget Jones's Diary – Saturday 10 June". The Independent.
- ^ Jones, Bridget (Fielding, Helen). "Bridget Jones's Diary – Tuesday 21 March". The Independent.
[telephone call] 'Bridget, it's Mark. You know what I said the other night - about adopting the baby? I did mean it you know. It's only the wretched Cleaver element which gets in the way. Maybe we should talk.'
- ^ Independent Columns 1995
- ^ Telegraph Columns 1997
- ^ a b Pearlman, Cindy (4 May 2001). "Brit Colin Firth is newest hottie". Chicago Sun-Times.
- ^ Cartner-Morley, Jess (11 April 2001). "The real Mr Darcy". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-06-19.
- ^ Director Sharon Maguire in the audio commentary for Bridget Jones's Diary.
- ^ Capon, Felicity (28 May 2013). "Bridget Jones returns in new title, Mad About the Boy". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2013-07-30.
- ^ "Misprint hits Bridget Jones book". BBC News. 2013-10-10. Retrieved 2018-12-02.
- ^ a b c Steiner, Susie (31 March 2001). "Twice Shy". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-05-20.
- ^ Jones, Bridget (Fielding, Helen) (25 October 1995). "Bridget Jones's Diary". The Independent. p. 5.
- ^ Ryan, Tom (6 March 2004). "Renaissance man". The Age. Retrieved 2008-05-25.
- ^ Grice, Elizabeth (3 April 2001). "He's back - without the breeches". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 30 May 2008. Retrieved 2008-06-03.
- Jane Austen Societyof North America. Retrieved 2008-06-19.
- Vanity Fair Italia.
- ReelViews. Retrieved 2008-05-21.
- Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason – Deleted scenes (DVD). United International Pictures.
- ^ "Third Bridget Jones in pipeline". BBC News. 15 July 2009. Retrieved 15 July 2009.
- US Magazine. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
- ^ Hibbs, James (31 October 2022). "Bridget Jones author confirms she's working on fourth movie". Radio Times. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
- ^ Grobar, Matt (9 April 2024). "Renée Zellweger, Hugh Grant & Emma Thompson To Return For 'Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy'; Chiwetel Ejiofor, Leo Woodall Also Set". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 9 April 2024.