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Happy 25th birthday, Bridget! Blue soup and ciggies all around!
Yes, prepare to feel old old, because Bridget Jones is back in cinemas celebrating its 25th anniversary.
A loose adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, the 2001 film stars Renée Zellwegger as the titular Bridget, a 30-something single woman working in publishing in London. She is witty and fun and, occasionally, also a little awkward and embarrassing. And she remains one of our most relatable rom-com heroines to this day.
One of the most beloved — and, perhaps, controversial — films in the rom-com genre, Bridget Jones has a complicated legacy. While we all love Bridget and Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) and can't help but be charmed by the caddish Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant), there's no denying that the film is, shall we say, a product of its time. From the rampant fatphobia to the outdated brand of '90s misogyny, Bridget Jones is not without its problems.
For its 25th anniversary, I watched it again with fresh eyes — how does it hold up? Here 25 thoughts I had rewatching Bridget Jones 25 years later.
Consider us on the edge of our seats.
- We open with Bridget's mum forcing her to wear a ruffled collar and floral vest to their Christmas party — and I'll say it: Bridget's “ugly” outfit is actually… kind of chic? Damson Madder and Doên girlies, eat your heart out.
2. I somehow forgot just how much Colin Firth is simply recreating his performance of Mr. Darcy from 1995 in this movie. In fact, I am only now remembering that this really is a full-on modern-day adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. Thrilling.
3. It's been said over and over again in the 25 years since this film was released, but Bridget is literally a very normal, healthy size. The thought that is filling me with horror is that her constant self-consciousness and dissatisfaction with her weight is not only firmly in the past, it's back with a vengeance. In the era of Ozempic and heroin chic 2.0, Bridget's weight obsession, horrifingly, still feels relevant. How upsetting.
4. Another thing that has been said before: Bridget's living situation is impossible. A firm reminder of how dire the cost of living has become, her one bed in Borough Market would undoubtedly cost several thousand pounds to rent today. We really were sold a dream about what life as a woman about town working in media would be. Bridget Jones and Carrie Bradshaw have a lot to answer for.
5. Speaking of Bridget's flat, can we please talk about the London of it all? Her walk to work across Tower Bridge. Her nights out in Borough Market pubs. Maybe life in London wasn't always a grey, uphill slog!
6. Bridget's in her open plan office overlooking the Thames. Remember those giant Macs? Remember AOL? Remember when sexual harassment at the office was cute?
7. Watching Bridget prepare to dazzle at a work do with her newly acquired factoids is vaugely triggering. Chechn-ya.
8. How on earth did they get Salman Rushdie to be in this movie?
9. Bridget's friends really are everything. And their messy, cocktail-fuelled nights out, surrounded by cigarette smoke are giving me life. This is the anti-clean girl propaganda we need!
10. I suppose we need to discuss the granny pants of it all. Rewatching this film in 2026, I have probably too many thoughts about Bridget's iconic enormous pants. On one hand, it feels anti-feminist to indicate that we should be trying to squeeze our floppy bits into restrictive underwear. Leave it in the Victorian age! On the other hand, it feels anti-feminist to be embarrassed about it, too. The one upshot is that rake Daniel Cleaver is actually refreshingly easy-going about discovering her enormous pants, which serves as a timeless reminder that we should all wear precisely what we want to wear, thank you very much.
11. I'll give it to her — Bridget looks seriously chic in her Grace Kelly headscarf.
12. And her windswept nest of hair is one of the most relatable things about her so far. Literally me any time I leave the house looking chic before encountering British weather.
13. Okay, is Natasha really a villain? Let's get into it. Like, god forbid a put-together woman vocalises her plan to marry someone. And god forbid she casts a gentle side eye on the woman who looks and acts like a psycho (sorry Bridge) with her boyfriend every time they encounter her. Natasha is, of course, the high-flying career woman version of Caroline Bingley of Pride and Prejudice. I've said it before and i'll say it again. Justice for Caroline. And justice for Natasha.
14. Put man in pond! Another excellent thing borrowed from 1995 Pride & Prejudice is, of course, Daniel in pond. After Colin Firth was dumped in the pond in the Austen adaptation, I'll go as far as to say that Bridget Jones solidified the wet romantic lead as an official romance trope. Bridgerton and, of course, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy followed suit. Daniel Cleaver sopping wet, cigarette dangling from his mouth is Culturally Important Moment.
15. Daniel's got a work crisis. Sure, Dan. Red flags and unreliable men certainly have the same playbook as they did 25 years ago. There, not much has changed.
16. Bridget's mum and dad always seemed like a pointless side plot to me — but I am moved! Relationships are hard and, in Bridget Jones, we get a glimpse at the highs and lows that follow happily ever after.
17. Poor Bridge is trying to clamber up a fire pole. Work in media is not for the faint of heart. What once seemed to me like another example of Bridget's general incompetence is actually an example of how she is let down by a chaotic team. Despite the miniskirt moment, she actually handled that mess well. She isn't bad at her job, people.
18. Here come the smug marrieds. Another depressing current, relatable concept. We all know a smug married couple, don't we? Is coupling up still the ultimate goal? Why are we all still so damn smug about it? And why are people still refusing to be individual people who hang out with their friends without their partners?
19. Mark likes Bridget just as she is. This is one of the most underrated confessions of love in any rom-com ever. It's actually extremely rare for someone to accept you as you are — to love the present you rather than the potential you.
20. Bridget's making blue soup. Mark has rolled up his sleeves and is being a very good sous chef. Swoon.
21. Bridget is turning 33, she's unmarried and she's celebrating with a chaotic dinner party with her amazing friends in her tiny flat. Surprisingly millennial/ Gen Z of her. This really is dream rather than being smug and married, isn't it?
22. Daniel is telling Bridget, "If I can't make it with you then I can't make it with anyone." We all deserve better and thank goodness Bridget recognises it. This is rather tragic for Daniel, who ultimately really can't make it with anyone because of his own flaws. If you've seen the fourth film, you know that Bridget really is the great love and friendship of his life.
23. Bridget's friends are taking her to Paris. I never realised how much this is a story about friends as family.
24. COME THE FUCK ON, BRIDGET. Iconic.
25. What a perfect ending. The snow, the knickers, the new diary. Remember when they wrote good rom-coms?
