Bridgerton's Most Hated Character Is an Unnecessary Distraction From the Romance

I have something to say, but some of you aren’t going to like it. Despite being a huge Bridgerton fan, I’ve never really cared for Lady Whistledown. But before you get out your pitchforks, let me preface something. 

First of all, I love Julie Andrews. Her voiceovers are brilliant for framing the show and are genuinely a delight to listen to because, again, Julie Andrews. However, the Netflix series has a Whistledown problem. Like Eloise, the show is way too obsessed with the gossip columnist. And honestly? It suffers for it.

Bridgerton Works Best With Lady Whistledown in the Background

At the start, Whistledown was this omniscient entity that struck fear into the hearts of everyone at the ton. We never quite knew what her next move would be, where she got this gossip from, and which families would face ruin in her column. At the time, the walls really did have ears, and whenever a new Lady Whistledown column arrived, we were just as on edge as everyone else on-screen. Then, Whistledown’s identity was revealed to be “insipid wallflower” Penelope Featherington. That was the moment everything changed. 

From then on, Lady Whistledown became a lot more tedious. Instead of being used as a framing device and unpredictable additive to the main story, the show suddenly became all about her. Instead of devoting time to other subplots or other Bridgerton siblings, Bridgerton Season 2 had, in my opinion, more of a 50/50 split: Half the time, the show was about Kate and Anthony. The other half? Whistledown central — whether that be Eloise’s pursuit, Penelope’s panic about getting caught, or Penelope calculating her next move. By the end of Season 2, I had had quite enough of Whistledown.

Given that Season 3 focused on Penelope herself, having a Whistledown-heavy plot was kind of expected. But even that went too far. In my opinion, the love story between Colin and Penelope in that season was greatly overshadowed by the Whistledown secret, leaving Colin’s developing feelings for Penelope feel a little random at best. Only two episodes of yearning were not nearly enough for a show where yearning is basically its bread and butter. The truth is, their relationship was rushed to make room for half a season of agonising over the Whistledown secret, and if you’re going for a friends-to-lovers dynamic, that just doesn’t work. 

So, when Penelope revealed herself at the end of Season 3, I genuinely thought that this was the end of Whistledown — at least, of a Whistledown that dominated so much screentime. How wrong was I?

Season 4 Nearly Fixed the Whistledown Problem

In Season 4, Whistledown is still limping on, and ironically, it feels like Penelope is just as tired of it all as viewers are. Given that Bridgerton is, in some ways, an ensemble show, it was rather frustrating for so much time to be dedicated to Penelope’s adjustment as a public Whistledown. Sure, it was an important evolution and deserved exploration. But not at the expense of other characters and plotlines. When Anthony and Kate appeared in Season 3, they didn’t feature as prominently as Penelope did in Season 4. The general rule is this: once you’ve had your season, you effectively pass on the torch to the next couple. But sadly, because of the Whistledown plotline, it felt like that torch was never really passed on. 

So, imagine my joy when Penelope decided not to do Whistledown anymore. This excitement, however, was short-lived when it was revealed that another anonymous Whistledown had taken the reins. 

Can Bridgerton Move on From the Whistledown Crutch in Season 5?

So, where do we go from here? Unfortunately, it looks likely that Season 5 of Bridgerton and beyond will be back in the Whistledown saddle. But what producers might not realise is that the show doesn’t actually need this. The cast, love stories, and leads are actually incredibly strong — and that is why Bridgerton has survived longer than most other Netflix shows. It really has nothing to do with Lady Whistledown. After all, multiple Bridgerton books survived without Whistledown, as did the TV show spin-off Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story. 

At its core, Bridgerton is a story about love, not about Lady Whistledown. If anything, I feel like the producers should back themselves enough to feel confident in moving forward without her.