If you've seen that gobsmacking finale of Bridgerton season four, then you'll know we're in store for a brand new Lady Whistledown next season. Yes, sadly, Penelope Bridgerton (Nicola Coughlan) has officially put down her quill and called it a day, putting to rest seasons of deliciously juicy gossip and revelations. Who can forget season one's unveiling of the wallflower Penelope being behind the pen, as she dramatically removed her hood as she escaped Queen Charlotte's guards? Or when she was blackmailed by Cressida Cowper (boooo!), which forced Penelope to reveal her identity to the entire ton at a ball.
Showrunner Jess Brownell answers all your burning questions and reveals plenty of intel on season five.
For many of us Bridgerton fanatics, it's a bittersweet ending — Penelope brought us so many jawdropping scenes and created much water cooler debates. Now, though, it's time for a new Lady Whistledown, and there's lots of gossip around who it might be.
Read our full guide below about who the next potential ghostwriter could be…
Keep up — Lady Whistledown is an anonymous writer who shares all the gossip from around the ton. Think of her like the period version of ‘Xo, Xo, Gossip Girl’. It was revealed to the audience in season one that Lady Whistledown was none other than show fave, Penelope Bridgerton (then Penelope Featherington). The rest of the ton found out in season three's dramatic finale.
Following the aforementioned blackmail attempts by Cressida Cowper, Penelope reveals her identity to all of the high society at a ball, choosing to fully embrace her role as the town tout rather than hide it (you go, girl). After confessing her identity to Queen Charlotte, Penelope announces to everyone at the Dankworth-Finch ball that she is indeed the author of the society papers. Cue shocked gasps.
Well… this is what everyone wants to know. Just who will take up the mantle of Lady Whistledown? There are a lot of theories floating about, but here's what we know so far:
Okay, this one's a bit leftfield, but bear with us… The Crabtrees, who are the caretakers of My Cottage, which is the residence of Benedict and Sophie. In an episode of the official Bridgerton podcast, director Tom Verica jokingly suggested it might be the couple. It seemed like he was just having a laugh, but if Bridgerton's taught us anything, it's that you never know where the show could go next.
There's also a theory floating around that Penelope could just be faking her retirement — so that she can maintain her anonymity in writing under the Lady Whistledown penname. Maybe a far-fetched idea, but one that TV presenter Alison Hammond floated on the Bridgerton podcast, so who knows?
Perhaps more likely to take on the role of the new Lady Whistledown could be Hyacinth Bridgerton, the youngest child of the Bridgerton family. When Hannah Dodd mentioned that she'd like Hyacinth to become Whistledown while appearing on Bridgerton: The Official Podcast, to which Claudia Jesse, who plays Eloise, commented that she would be “fantastic.” The jury's out, but we think she'd make an excellent gossip.
Brimsley
And last, but certainly not least, might we throw Brimsley's ornate hat into the ring? On the podcast, Golda Rosheuvel, who plays Queen Charlotte, said she reckons it would be hilarious if Brimsley — the Queen’s ultra-loyal right-hand man — turned out to be Whistledown. “That would be funny,” she said. Adjoa Andoh, who stars as Lady Agatha Danbury, said she’s actually quite into the Brimsley theory. She pointed out that, in a way, he moves through a ball a bit like Penelope Featherington would — quietly watching everything and taking it all in. Maybe there's legs to this theory after all…
We guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens. In the meantime, there's always season four to rewatch. And did you catch that extra scene in the credits?
Bridgerton author Julia Quinn explains.
