‘Bridgerton’ Without Lady Whistledown: Can the Show Survive Her Absence?

‘Bridgerton’s Society Might Be Less Forthcoming With Their Idle Gossip

Penelope transformed into London’s most prolific gossip columnist because of her status as a wallflower. No one was paying attention as she compiled information whispered along the sides of the ballroom. She no longer has that anonymity on her side. Now that she’s out in the open as Lady Whistledown and a member of one of the most prestigious families, members of the ton might be very hesitant to speak so freely around her. Although Penelope has received approval from Queen Charlotte to keep Lady Whistledown going, that doesn’t mean that the rest of the ton will be as accepting. Anything that’s whispered near her could end up in the next edition of Lady Whistledown.

A primary source of Penelope’s information about members of the ton would come from the servants lining the walls at each social event. Servants and maids see and know all the inner workings of their employers, hence why they made the best sources for Penelope. The working class is viewed even lower than wallflowers, and they would face the most consequences should their employers find out that they’ve been airing their dirty laundry in earshot of the infamous Lady Whistledown. With Penelope’s private persona now public, servants and maids might not be as open to idle gossip when their livelihoods could be on the line. Next season could find Penelope in a difficult position where she struggles to write a new column when society around her is afraid of what she could reveal.

Lady Whistledown and Queen Charlotte Will Align Themselves as Frenemies

For three seasons, the biggest enemy to Lady Whistledown has been Queen Charlotte. Since the first season, she has spent much of her time trying (and failing) to track down the infamous, anonymous gossip columnist. Once she finally does put real pressure on the Bridgerton family, Penelope reveals her identity to the queen in a letter before she publicly unveils the truth. The queen likes a good show, and she is satisfied with Penelope’s public plea for mercy at the Dankforth-Finch ball. Because Queen Charlotte hasn’t thrown Penelope in jail, this could mark a turning point where Penelope and the queen become allies in a society where gossip is power. In exchange for exclusive gossip, the queen could make a deal with the ultimate aggregator of London high society.

However, this alliance has limits. Queen Charlotte still has power over Penelope as the monarch, as there is no general protection of the press during this Regency period. Penelope could very well be privy to private royal affairs and eventually cross a line. Now that there’s a face to Lady Whistledown, there could be serious consequences for publishing information against the queen’s wishes. Queen Charlotte and Penelope’s relationship could act as a commentary on censorship and freedom of the press moving forward in the world of Bridgerton.

Part of the fun of the Lady Whistledown-Queen Charlotte rivalry was the cat-and-mouse chase between these powerful women. Through Penelope’s words, Lady Whistledown knew how to strike at the queen and insight retaliation. It’s always been a game between them. As Lady Danbury (Adjoa Andoh) points out to Queen Charlotte, sometimes it’s better to prolong the game instead of outright winning. There will always be a level of tension between these powerful women and what they mean to the society they operate in. It would be fun to see Queen Charlotte and Penelope push each other as frenemies in order to keep their game going.

Lady Whistledown Could Be a Force For Good in ‘Bridgerton’

Before Penelope reveals her identity to the ton, she does admit to her best friend, Eloise Bridgerton (Claudia Jessie), that she should’ve used her gossip column to be a voice for the voiceless, not just to gain power for herself. In her appeal to the ton at the Dankworth-Finch ball, Penelope openly admits that at times she acted carelessly with her power as Lady Whistledown. Now that she’s out in the open, Penelope has the opportunity to practice what she preaches in her use of the Lady Whistledown pamphlet moving forward. Thanks to the Bridgerton book series, there is precedent for Lady Whistledown helping save someone’s life.

In An Offer From A Gentleman, Benedict Bridgerton, portrayed in the Netflix series by Luke Thompson, falls in love with the mysterious lady in silver at the Bridgerton masquerade ball. The lady in silver is in fact Sophie Beckett, a bastard orphan turned maid. After she’s accused of attending the ball by her stepmother, Araminta Reiling, Sophie is forced to leave and try to survive on her own; as a way to have some money, she steals shoe clips off a pair of Araminta’s shoes. Much later, after Sophie attempts to run away from Benedict once he learns that she was the lady in silver the whole time, Araminta catches her and throws her in jail. It’s thanks to this altercation appearing in the next edition of Lady Whistledown that Benedict and Violet Bridgerton, played in the series by Ruth Gemmell, discover Sophie’s whereabouts and rescue her.

Here we see the full potential of Lady Whistledown’s power for good. The sighting of a maid being dragged off by a former employer, who turns out to be her stepmother, shines a light on a powerless Sophie to a powerful family such as the Bridgertons. Had Violet and Benedict not been made aware of what happened, Sophie could’ve been killed or shipped off in exile to another country as a prisoner. It’s heavily hinted that Benedict’s love story is up next, and Penelope has pledged to do better with how she uses Lady Whistledown moving forward. If An Offer From A Gentleman is adapted for the fourth season, Penelope helping her brother-in-law’s love interest would be a good use of her power as Lady Whistledown.

Lady Whistledown has brought London society together through the bonds forged by gossip. It’s rare for a woman to have power like this, especially now that Lady Whistledown’s identity is out in the open. Although we know Lady Whistledown will continue, the possibilities of the gossip column’s future are endless. As we begin the wait for Season 4, let’s hope Lady Whistledown’s continued impact on the series doesn’t go out of vogue.