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watch: Shonda Rhimes and Betsy Beers write new ‘Bridgetown’ book
After just two seasons of the living Shonda Rhimes series, “Bridgerton” has a prequel — and luckily for Netflix viewers, the six episodes that kicked off this week are packed with deliciousness and sinister intrigue. As local gossip Lady Whistledown, impeccably voiced by Julie Andrews, might say to her dear readers, “Love and war are fair.”
Rest assured, there’s plenty of real-life gravitas as well as unexpected touches in “Queen Charlotte: The Bridgerton Story.” This is just the origin story we need, because young Charlotte (India Amarteifio in a star-making show) meets and marries the handsome King George III of England (Corey Mylchreest has cheekbones for days) just for Learn about his shocking secrets.
But let’s not rush. The series is set against the backdrop of a mature Queen Charlotte (the indelibly imperious Golda Rosewell), who faces royal pressure to marry off at least one of her 13 children to produce an heir. It was this pressure that prompted the Queen to consider her youth.
Switch to Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Germany, who was just 17 when she and her brother Adolphus (Tunji Kasim) appeared in court over their arranged marriage to Georg, who was 23 at the time. She was so terrified of the moment that she tried to climb over a tree without telling her who George was when he approached her in the garden. His charm and good looks disarm her. And us.
So far Chon Daland, but “Queen Charlotte” breaks with convention by combining fantasy with actual history. This is the first time. Charlotte does not appear in the Bridgerton book by Julia Quinn. But she was real, and is believed to be the first black queen of Britain.
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Despite the king’s attraction to her, Charlotte is shocked when he leaves her on their wedding night to quarantine at another castle. His reason? A mental instability bordering on manic-depressive made him terrified of having children. Later, Charlotte slyly avoids George’s quack doctor and his controlling mother (Michelle Fairley) in a relationship with the shy man she loves.
The story was told on stage and in the 1994 Oscar-nominated film The Mad King George, starring Nigel Hawthorne and Helen Mirren. A fancier version of “Bridgeton” depicts the “Great Experiment” launched by Parliament, in which land and titles were awarded to people of colour, so that interracial marriage – a shadow of Harry and Meghan’s – was no big deal.
Something fascinating, like the secret homosexual affair between the King’s valet Reynolds (Freddie Dennis) and the Queen’s right-hand man Brimsley (Sam Clemmett) . But the bond that really resonates here is that between the Queen and her main confidante, Lady Danbury, who play with fire when they are young (Azema Thomas) and old (Ajoya Andor) . Both actresses are dynamite.
Most of all, “Queen Charlotte” celebrates the long-lasting friendship between Charlotte and George. Intimate details are still lost to history, especially as George’s condition worsened in the final years of his reign. Leave it to the “Bridgerton” team to fill in for Amarteifio and Mylchreest, bringing such warmth and enthusiasm to their roles that you’ll swoon.
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Rhimes and “Bridgerton” showrunner Chris Van Dusen had one goal: “We knew we wanted the show to reflect the world we live in today, and even though it takes place in the 19th century, we still wanted modern audiences to relate to it and see them himself on the screen.”
Livelier’s challenge was to do all of that while still delivering on “Bridgetown”‘s promise of sexy, lavish, jaw-dropping entertainment. For these reasons, gentle reader, you need no doubts.
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