Mad About The Boy: Bridget Jones is back – but is she still relevant?
A “verbally incontinent spinster, who smokes like a chimney, drinks like a fish and dresses like her mother” – not an auspicious introduction to Bridget Rose Jones, but accurate.
On paper, it doesn’t sound like the dream role, but Renée Zellweger disagrees, telling Sky News: “It’s the best job in the world to step into her shoes for a while”.
New pants, same old Bridget. Pic: Universal Pictures
Three decades after the character came to life on the page, and following a trio of earlier films, Zellweger has returned to “this just endearing character” for a fourth movie, Mad About The Boy.
With returning characters including Hugh Grant, Colin Firth and Emma Thompson, new relationships are also introduced, with Leo Woodall and Chiwetel Ejiofor joining the cast.
Zellweger goes on: “I love her. I love her humour. I love her vulnerability. I love her imperfection. I love the opportunity to play out her miscalculating a plan and it maybe, surprising her in her execution. I love all of it.”
The first film earned Zellweger an Oscar nod for her portrayal of Bridget, and the character’s name has gone into the lexicon.
Mad About The Boy director Michael Morris – the first male director to step into the franchise – told Sky News: “When you see Bridget, you realize how many, how few characters there are in film that are just unapologetically human. It’s weird. There should be more…
“She looks the way she looks when she gets up. She’s late for school. She drops things when she shouldn’t drop them. She makes the wrong speech when she needs to give the right speech. And all of those things make you just fall in love with her.”
Read more: Bridget Jones: A heroine of our time or an absolute disgrace?
Director Michael Morris chats to Zellweger on set. Pic: Universal Pictures
After years of soul-searching, her creator, Helen Fielding, has decided the key to Bridget’s appeal lies in her revealing “the gap between how you feel you are supposed to be and how you really are inside.”
Fielding’s anonymous columns for The Independent, first published in 1995, were a word-of-mouth hit. The four subsequent books were bestsellers.
Produced by Working Title – the production company behind British hits including Four Weddings And A Funeral, Love Actually and Notting Hill – the first film took more than $280m (£225m) worldwide.
Studio bosses will be hoping Mad About The Boy will work a similar magic, and with ticket pre-sales proving bigger than Barbie, it’s looking promising.
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Digging down into Bridget’s enduring appeal, Angela McRobbie, Professor of Cultural Studies at Goldsmiths University of London, told Sky News the character’s timely merging of political and popular culture sent out a positive message to young women in the 90s and early 2000s.
“The figure of Bridget Jones, both in writing and then in film represented a new kind of young woman who had been to university, who knew her Jane Austen, and who knew a little bit about feminism.
“There was a sense in which the knowledge of feminism haunted the Bridget Jones phenomena, but in a way that she wanted to discard it and put it in the past.
“She wanted to be feminine. She wanted to be sexy. She wanted to [wear a] Playboy bunny outfit. And in her dream landscape, she imagined a white wedding with lots of kids in the Home Counties. There was a sense in which what the column and then the film did was offered a kind of release from the burden of being feminist”.
Pic: Rex Features
She says Bridget wearing a see-through shirt and miniskirt into the office was her way of saying: “We have to live with sexual inequality, it’s not such a bad thing. I want to be a real girl. I want to enjoy my sexuality if it gets me the attention I want from the boss”.
McRobbie goes on: “In some ways, you could say she was legitimising a kind of sexual inequality in the workplace, but in a fun, light-hearted way.”
Emotional intelligence coach and Bridget Jones fan Miriam Bross told Sky News she can see why Bridget has been described as “feminist Marmite”.
Pic: Rex Features
“I think one of the reasons why people react strongly to her is because she was turned into an icon. She was supposed to be the woman of the 90s…
“That’s when you get this polarisation where you feel like you have to either be in favour of Bridget or not. But actually, she’s such a complex character that there’s something for everybody.
“She was this single woman who had fun. Yes, she ends up with a man in the end. But that isn’t the main part. The main part is that she is successful. Even though she makes mistakes, she is a normal weight and is still chased by men.
“Why Bridget still lives on is because she gave people the main message – be yourself and you’re going to be okay.”
Actor Chiwetel Ejiofor joins the cast. Pic: Universal Pictures
Bross also says that Bridget helped prove that a film focused on the female experience could be as successful as a male-led movie.
“In the 80s, rom coms were all about neurotic men finding love… The female leads in them had very little to say.”
A case in point is Julia Roberts’s actress heroine in Notting Hill – as Bross says – “her silence is so normalised that Ronan Keating wrote the song When You Say Nothing At All celebrating her silence”.
But then in comes Bridget: “She talks. She has voiceovers. We see her thoughts. It’s about her. It’s not just about her and love, it’s about her in her job, we see her working. We see her making mistakes. We see her.”
Bross goes on: “Who doesn’t like to see themselves represented on film? Representation matters very much. And here was this flawed woman who got the guy in the end.”
Zellweger and Leo Woodall in Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy. Pic: Universal Pictures
Both McRobbie and Bross say they will be watching Mad About The Boy.
But is it the same old Bridget we’ll see in the new film? With a very different tone to previous instalments, can fans look forward to the dollop of nostalgia they’re likely craving?
As McRobbie rightly notes, the experience of the Gen Z audience watching the movie today is very different to that of their predecessors.
“It’s a much tougher world than it was certainly in the early 2000s and even in the second film. Young women have to deal with toxic masculinity, and they have to navigate their way through sexuality and they’re much more aware of sexual violence.”
It begs the question, will Bridget have the same appeal in 2025 as she did in 2001?
Bross says she still has much to offer: “This character is like an old friend. So even if she’s not entirely up to date, you will still love her…
“When people are stressed, when they’re anxious, they turn to the familiar. People do need something soothing. They need narratives that help them calm down in stressful times.”
Meanwhile, Zellweger promises Bridget will still exhibit all the qualities that have made her beloved worldwide.
“I think it’s just a continuation of these authentic representations of a person’s experience and different life chapters.
“It feels like the essence of the person is the same and her very familiar optimism, her vulnerability and her sweetness and her humour, all that’s the same.”
Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy is in cinemas now.
The Salt Path author Raynor Winn’s fourth book has been delayed by her publisher.
It comes amid claims that the author lied about her story in her hit first book. Winn previously described the claims as “highly misleading” and called suggestions that her husband had Moth made up his illness “utterly vile”.
In a statement, Penguin Michael Joseph, said it had delayed the publication of Winn’s latest book On Winter Hill – which had been set for release 23 October.
The publisher said the decision had been made in light of “recent events, in particular intrusive conjecture around Moth’s health”, which it said had caused “considerable distress” to the author and her family.
“It is our priority to support the author at this time,” the publisher said.
“With this in mind, Penguin Michael Joseph, together with the author, has made the decision to delay the publication of On Winter Hill from this October.”
A new release date will be announced in due course, the publisher added.
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Winn’s first book, released in 2018, detailed the journey she and husband took along the South West Coast Path – familiarly known as The Salt Path – after they lost their family farm and Moth received a terminal health diagnosis of Corticobasal Degeneration (CBD).
But a report in The Observer disputed key aspects of the 2018 “true” story – which was recently turned into a film starring Jason Isaacs and Gillian Anderson.
Raynor and husband Moth (centre) with actors Jason Isaacs (L) and Gillian Anderson (R). Pic: Steve Tanner/Black Bear
Experts ‘sceptical of health claims’
As part of the article, published last weekend, The Observer claimed to have spoken to experts who were “sceptical” about elements of Moth’s terminal diagnosis, such as a “lack of acute symptoms and his apparent ability to reverse them”.
In the ensuing controversy, PSPA, a charity that supports people with CBD, cut ties with the couple.
The Observer article also claimed the portrayal of a failed investment in a friend’s business wasn’t true, but said the couple – whose names are Sally and Tim Walker – lost their home after Raynor Winn embezzled money from her employer and had to borrow to pay it back and avoid police action.
Anderson played Winn in a movie about the couple’s journey. Pic: Steve Tanner/Black Bear
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It also said that, rather than being homeless, the couple had owned a house in France since 2007.
Winn’s statement said the dispute with her employer wasn’t the reason the couple lost their home – but admitted she may have made “mistakes” while in the job.
“For me it was a pressured time,” she wrote. “It was also a time when mistakes were being made in the business. Any mistakes I made during the years in that office, I deeply regret, and I am truly sorry.”
She admitted being questioned by police but said she wasn’t charged.
The author also said accusations that Moth lied about having CBD/CBS were false and had “emotionally devastated” him.
“I have charted Moth’s condition with such a level of honesty, that this is the most unbearable of the allegations,” Winn wrote on her website.
The first fan started queuing before 8am.
Heaton Park, just north of Manchester City centre, is tonight hosting 80,000 fans who’ve come to see the Gallaghers’ homecoming.
“I would honestly say it’s a real cultural moment of the 21st century,” says Sam, who’s from Manchester and has come here with a group of friends – including one who has travelled from Australia for the gig.
Oasis fans wear band T-shirts with the almost obligatory bucket hats. Pic: Reuters
This will be the fourth time Sam has seen Oasis play, although obviously not for many years, and he says he can’t wait for the moment the band comes on to the stage.
“The reaction from the fans, that’s going to be really special,” he says. “This band means so much to the North West.”
Like many people attending tonight’s concert, Sam is wearing a bucket hat.
Liam Gallagher’s iconic headgear has become a part of the band’s cultural legacy and they are certainly on display here, with street vendors popping up all around the park’s perimeter.
Another fan, Dean, tells me he feels incredibly lucky to have got a ticket at all.
“I had seven devices out when the tickets were released and I didn’t get one,” he says. “And then about three days ago, a friend of mine messaged to say she couldn’t make it.
“So I made it. £120 with coach travel there and back – perfect.”
Dom has flown from half a world away to be in Manchester tonight
Dom is another fan who has come from Australia for the gig.
“We’re frothing to be here, like so stoked,” he says, “The atmosphere is going to be electric.”
Read more:
Review – Oasis reunite for first gig in 16 years
A timeline of Britpop’s most successful band
One young couple are here on their honeymoon. From Italy, they met at a Liam Gallagher concert several years ago.
“It’s where we fell in love,” Claudia says. “And we got married last month so we wanted to be here to celebrate.”
Amanda, from Manchester, is also here with a loved one – well, sort of.
Amanda has found a way to make sure her son, who lives in Australia, is there in spirit
She’s wearing a paper cut-out mask of her 30-year-old son Harry’s face.
“He’s in Melbourne and got a ticket but then couldn’t come,” Amanda explains.
“And so Harry doesn’t feel left out,” she says pulling the mask down over her face, “we’ve brought him with us!”
Entertainment
Chris Brown: R&B singer denies further charges following alleged bottle attack in London club
R&B singer Chris Brown has denied further charges following an alleged bottle attack in a London nightclub.
The 36-year-old pleaded not guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH) to music producer Abraham Diaw, during a hearing at Southwark Crown Court on Friday.
Brown also denied one count of having an offensive weapon – a bottle – in a public place.
Chris Brown arriving at Southwark Crown Court on Friday. Pic: PA
The Grammy-winning US musician last month pleaded not guilty to a more serious charge of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent to Mr Diaw.
The attack allegedly happened at the Tape venue, a private members’ club in Hanover Square, Mayfair, on 19 February 2023.
The plea hearing is part of preparations for his five to seven-day trial, which is due to take place from 26 October 2026.
Brown’s co-defendant, US national Omololu Akinlolu, 39, on Friday pleaded not guilty to a charge of assaulting Mr Diaw occasioning him actual bodily harm.
Akinlolu, a rapper who goes by the name Hoody Baby, has previously pleaded not guilty to attempting to cause grievous bodily harm.
Brown’s co-defendant Omololu Akinlolu arrives at court. Pic: Reuters
The defendants sat side-by-side in the dock, looking straight ahead during the hearing in London.
Around 20 fans sat in the public gallery behind the dock for Friday’s hearing, with several gasping as Brown walked into the courtroom.
The Go Crazy singer was able to continue with his scheduled international tour after he was freed on conditional bail in May.
He had to pay a £5m security fee to the court as part of the bail agreement, which is a financial guarantee to ensure a defendant returns to court and may be forfeited if they breach bail conditions.
Read more:
Chris Brown posts message after being released on bail
Mr Diaw was standing at the bar of the Tape nightclub when he was struck several times with a bottle, and then pursued to a separate area of the venue where he was punched and kicked repeatedly, Manchester Magistrates’ Court previously heard.
Brown was arrested at Manchester’s Lowry Hotel at 2am on 15 May by detectives from the Metropolitan Police.
He is said to have flown into Manchester Airport on a private jet in preparation for the UK tour dates.
Brown was released from HMP Forest Bank in Salford, Greater Manchester, on 21 May.
The singer, who rose to stardom as a teenager in 2005, won his first Grammy award for best R&B album in 2011 for F.A.M.E..
He earned his second in the same category for 11:11 (Deluxe) earlier this year.
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