Adjoa Andoh criticises Netflix's Bridgerton for Shondaland's failure to properly light black actors: 'Nothing's changed'.

by Thinus Ferreira

Actress Adjoa Andoh (61) who portrays Lady Danbury in the Netflix drama series Bridgerton is criticising the Shonda Rhimes show for what she calls its failure to properly light black actors, saying "nothing's changed".

"I just want to come on and be Lady Danbury and do what she's got to do and be totally engaged with that," the actress told the Stirring It Up podcast with Andi and Miquita Oliver about the Shondaland-produced series filmed in the United Kingdom.

"The continuing conversation about lighting black skin - on every show. Nothing's changed," she remarked.

According to Adjoa Andoh, she "will now go: 'Am I blond?'" when she notices that lighting choices on set should be better.

"But I hate doing it, because a bit of me is like 'Oh, I don't want to do this, I don't want to make a fuss."

"When people say we're chippy or we're being militant or we're all that stuff, what I want to say is, 'I'm just a human being and I just want to do the gift that I'm blessed with. I want to do it in a free way like I see many other people doing."

Netflix brought Adjoa Andoh to South Africa in May to promote the third season of Bridgerton on the video streaming service where she appeared at a Bridgerton Tour event in Johannesburg that was was widely criticised by fans.

ALSO READ: South African fans slam Netflix SA's 'very embarrassing' Bridgerton Tour: 'Dear Gentle Reader, South Africa does it again, doesn’t get it right'.

How much money you'll need to become part of Bridgerton's ton: Here are the cost of those Regency Era mansions.

by Thinus Ferreira

Dearest gentle readers would need that which is not spoken of in polite society - and a lot of it - for even the most humblest of abodes in Netflix's Bridgerton. Here's how much those lavish Regency-era houses in the Netflix drama series will cost you today to become part of the ton. 

The American real estate website AgentAdvice crunched the numbers on Bridgerton currently in its third season on Netflix, and Queen Charlotte - as is only right - owns the most expensive resident, estimated at a mammoth $564 million (R10,2 billion).

The Duke and Duchess of Hastings, living well below their means, own the second and third most valuable properties, with a combined value of $74.5 million (R1.34 billion).

You'd be able to snap up the Mondrich residence as Bridgerton's most affordable home for the bargain-basement price of just $4.3 million (R77.9 million).

AgentAdvice researched the eye-watering cost of purchasing the stately homes featured in Bridgerton if they were put on the market today. 

The American real estate experts calculated the estimated market value for each property by multiplying the mansion's estimated floor space in square feet, by the local area's median price per square foot, and converted it from British pound to American dollar, in today's prices.

Each building’s area measurements were sourced from Ordnance Survey, the official national mapping agency for Great Britain and area measurements were multiplied by the number of floors for each building to produce a total estimated interior floor size. This was then converted from square meters to square feet.

The median house prices and sizes for each local area were sourced from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, which was then used to determine a median price per square foot. 

The most to least expensive residences are revealed:

1. Queen Charlotte's residence: Hampton Court Palace

Richmond upon Thames, London

Estimated value: $564 810 582

Queen Charlotte befittingly has the most expensive residence, with experts revealing its market value at a staggering $564 million. This was derived from the palace's estimated floor space of 712,054 sq ft, featuring a 55-room kitchen once staffed by around 200 people and the median price per sq ft of $790 for its location in the London borough of Richmond Upon Thames.

2. The Duke of Hastings' London residence: Wilton House

Salisbury, Wiltshire

Estimated value: $47 488 515

At less than a tenth of the price of Queen Charlotte’s, the Duke of Hastings' London home would fetch an estimated $47.5 million in today’s market. It is among the best value for money, being the second-largest of Bridgerton’s residences at 124,581 sq ft, but with the second-cheapest median price per sq ft of $380 for the local area.

3. The Duke of Hastings’ Clyvedon Castle Castle Howard

Ryedale, North Yorkshire

Estimated value: $27 035 175

Adding to the Duke of Hastings’ property portfolio is Clyvedon Castle, the fictional county home where Daphne and Simon move to after their wedding. The stately home in the heart of Yorkshire has an impressive estimated size of 88,888 sq ft. With the cheapest price among the hit show's filming locations, at $303 per sq ft, the castle can still fetch a cool price tag of $27 million.

4. The Bridgerton residence: Ranger’s House

Greenwich, London

Estimated value: $8 222 960

The Bridgerton family’s mansion is the fourth most expensive property. In the story, it's located on Mayfair’s Grosvenor Square. But in reality, it is about eight miles away from central London, in Greenwich. It is the third-smallest house, still at a remarkable 14,621 sq ft, with a cost of $560 per sq ft, resulting in an estimated value of $8.2 million.

5. Lady Danbury’s estate: Holburne Museum of Art

Bath, Somerset

Estimated value: $7 094 227

The location for Lady Danbury's residence was originally constructed as a hotel and then turned into a museum that remains open to the public. It is one of Bridgerton's modest properties, much less than a tenth the size of Queen Charlotte’s at 16,147 sq ft. Compared to its cost per sq ft of $438, it equates to an estimated market value of $7.09 million.

6. Featherington residence: No.1 Royal Crescent

Bath, Somerset

Estimated value: $6 299 044

The Featherington household lives in the show's sixth most expensive residence. The sweeping U-shaped building comprising 30 historic terraced homes, is originally home to Penelope. No.1 Royal Crescent, now a museum, serves as the exterior of the family home. At around 14,338 square feet and a price per sq ft of $438 (the same locality as Lady Danbury’s), you’d need to fork out an estimated $6,299,044 to buy the property today.

7. Mondrich residence: Kingston Bagpuize House

Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Estimated value: $4 280 532

Bridgerton's latest family residence, Kent Estate, which belongs to the Mondrichs, is also known as Kingston Bagpuize House in real life. It is the most "affordable" of the show's opulent filming locations and the smallest at 9,821 sq ft. The local price per sq ft, $434, brings the total estimated market value to $4.28 million, requiring homebuyers to spend around $856 000 for a 20% deposit.

According to an AgentAdvice spokesperson, "Bridgerton uses some of the United Kingdom's most beautiful and historically important buildings, acting as a backdrop to some of the show's most important scenes and home to key characters".

"While these properties would be a dream to own for pretty much everyone, it's fun to see how much they could be worth in today’s value."

"Real estate values range from a few million for the Mondrich residence to over half a billion for Queen Charlotte’s residence, which almost rivals the size of Buckingham Palace."

South African fans slam Netflix SA's 'very embarrassing' Bridgerton Tour: 'Dear Gentle Reader, South Africa does it again, doesn’t get it right'.

by Thinus Ferreira

South African viewers again slammed Netflix's second tryout at doing a "Bridgerton Tour" on Saturday night, with those who looked and followed the spectacle, overwhelmingly dissing the lack of effort that South Africans who attended had put into the event - as well as their lack of knowledge and having not watched the show on Netflix.

After a "Bridgerton Affair activation" in South Africa two years ago that was widely pummelled by the public and the press for being off the mark and its lack of Indian representation, Netflix and Netflix South Africa tried again to get more traction for the upcoming third season of Bridgerton which will release in two parts starting in mid-May.

Like two years ago, Netflix once again flew people from elsewhere in Africa like Nigeria and Botswana to South Africa to play dress-up in old English outfits. Many however seemed clueless about what Bridgerton is, opting to over-focus on simply the fashion and photos.

Adjoa Andoh who portrays the character of Lady Danbury in Bridgerton, was also flown to Johannesburg and attended Saturday's event at the Memoire Events and Wedding Venue in Muldersdrift.

The PR company of Netflix South Africa, Eclipse Communications, didn't respond to media queries about the Bridgerton Tour in South Africa made last week and over the weekend.

On Saturday fans and viewers told Netflix South Africa in no uncertain terms that the people and what they saw as part of the Bridgerton activation on the night once again failed to impress - especially the lack of South African effort.

"Dear Gentle Reader, South Africa does it again, doesn't get it right," said Zamo Shangase. 

"The most known of society were in attendance but know the show, they did not. It's a shame that the creators and fans of the show were not in attendance. I wonder why? Anyways, I've heard that this was not the first, nor will it be the last where the people behind-the-scenes just miss the spot. Imagine Gentle Reader, meeting a DIY creator at a Maybelline event. Scandalous!"

Lazolala said it's embarrassing that Netflix SA "keep gatekeeping this event for celebs who don't even watch it and fans are left out in the cold".

Mtrinnisha told Netflix SA "the live was embarrassing. Most of the people there didn't know anything about Bridgerton", with Natasha Leigh who said "Half the people didn't even know the characters names or quotes. 

Talia Jadegov said "Just stop bringing this event to South Africa if you are only inviting people that don't even watch Bridgerton. How embarrassing!", while Kwezi Mshengu noted that "This is proof when South Africans go to an event they're going for food and alcohol".

Lucritia G said Netflix SA's Bridgerton event was "non-inclusive and people who seem not to have watched Bridgerton. Maybe listen to the feedback from your Dear Readers for once? Bridgerton is a global following and frankly this is very embarrassing for our local scene".

Nomkhosi Sabela said "That's what you get for inviting content creators instead of inviting fans - people who have watched the show. There's no way they were going to ace the looks because they know nothing about the show".

IamGrace said Netflix SA's event "was absurd. Most people couldn't answer the questions, indicating that they likely hadn't seen the series". 

Mitchie remarked: "Shout out to the Netflix team member who thought this was a good idea doing a live event - showing us what we had assumed with most Netflix events: Inviting a bunch of John Snow influencers who never truly appreciate the event that is organised".

ALSO READ: TV CRITIC's NOTEBOOK. Netflix South Africa's botched Bridgerton Affair and its lack of Indian representation - a media perspective.

TV CRITIC's NOTEBOOK. Netflix South Africa's botched Bridgerton Affair and its lack of Indian representation - a media perspective.

by Thinus Ferreira

Dear reader, 

If you've been looking for actual, you know, reporting on what happened there and who said what at Netflix South Africa's quite tacky "A Bridgerton Affair" of this past Friday, you'll struggle to find it.

It's by design. 

Netflix apparently doesn't and didn't want actual "old school" legacy media there, preferring to deal mostly with influencers who might take pretty pictures and drink, opting instead to cut out any communication to a lot of media that would, and used to, cover media engagements in the past.

With even Nigerians and Kenyans flown to Johannesburg to attend the tacky let's-play-dress-up event where Africans got dolled up in old English outfits, Netflix neglected to do basic communication and PR with a lot of South African media who were neither told beforehand it would take place, nor got word, a press release, photos, or even as much as a scandal sheet from Netflix after.

But it's not just a lot of legacy media that Marang Setshawelo, Netflix's publicity director in Amsterdam, and Netflix's South African-used PR companies like DNA Brand Architects and Eclipse Communications are apparently choosing to ignore. 

Besides the terrible and almost non-existent PR, Netflix SA's criticised A Bridgerton Affair event is now also getting slammed by furious South African Indians, media and influencers for its shocking exclusion of adequate representation of Indians.

Over the weekend South African Indians have noted Netflix's bizarre and cringe-decision to apparently exclude them as guests although the second season of Bridgerton - that the hashtagged-event of Netflix's "A Bridgerton Affair" was supposed to promote - features two South Asian lead guest stars for the second season, Simone Ashley and Charithra Chandranwho.

Just like Netflix apparently didn't want actual media at the event that was hosted by former Miss Universe Zozibini Tunzi and didn't want to bother to communicate with them either before or afterwards, Netflix doesn't now want to talk about the flack it is getting for its lack of Indian representation and its exclusionary guests list for A Bridgerton Affair.

South Africa has the largest Indian population outside of India but couldn't invite a single prominent South African Indian to Netflix SA's launch party for the second season of the show, Alyssa Pillay noted.

"Your PR team didn't know that the second season of Bridgerton had two Indian female leads," said The South African Desi. "And if they did, you failed in acknowledging any Indian female of your country."

"Despite being the platform that the Kandasamys released on, you couldn't even invite one member of that cast to be in attendance," The South African Desi continued, noting that "You have failed us Netflix SA".

Selina Naidoo also slammed Netflix South Africa, writing "Yet again Indians were excluded from another brand event", and saying "I do want to thank the brands and people at the table who are inclusive and are brave enough to speak out when there is no representation and inclusivity".

The flurry of comments criticising Netflix SA and its A Bridgerton Affair ranges from people saying "the number of thoughts I have on the lack of representation at this event are far too many to count", and "extremely disappointed at the representation and the organisers of this event", to "Do better Netflix SA - would love to know which PR and events company was in charge of this fail" and "I love how Bridgerton season 2 is all about Indian representation and yet South Africa fails to understand the assignment once again".

"Netflix SA, please have you PR people actually watch season 2 of Bridgerton and find out what and who it was all about! There is a sheer and blatant lack of diversity yet again," said another, with Miss Dhanusha saying "Imagine hosting A Bridgerton Affair which has two South Indian actresses as the leads and only having like 2 Indians at your event."

It was also laughably sad to notice how Netflix had to pay - with a very, very badly done advertorial - to place something about A Bridgerton Affair in this past Sunday's edition of The Sunday Times newspaper.

Either Netflix SA and its PR companies didn't invite or didn't want to invite even a reporter from The Sunday Times, or the Sunday Times didn't think A Bridgerton Affair was newsworthy enough to cover for this past Sunday's newspaper.

That's exactly what you get when you don't grow and maintain long-term media relationships where you talk to and build up trust and real relationships with reporters, who you know you can invite and who you know will still do what they do, but will likely cover your event with actual real reporting.  

Netflix's ugly mess with A Bridgerton Affair in South Africa is reminiscent of its botched media launch event for Happiness Ever After last year that also had media just shaking their heads in silence, and where Netflix and its PR companies squandered untold opportunities  - again not bothering to even remotely trying to communicate adequately to try and promote the film by reaching out to publications and reporters either beforehand for the media event, with absolutely no communication afterwards or what was said there.

Personally, I don't care about A Bridgerton Affair and wouldn't have been able to attend even if I were invited (I was covering a film festival in another city all week last week). 

However, Netflix SA and its PR companies couldn't bother to communicate that it would happen, didn't want to send an invitation, and there was nothing afterwards to several journalists whose job it is to cover Netflix and television and streaming services in South Africa. 

Even if Netflix South Africa or a PR company just said beforehand that A Bridgerton Affair would happen, picked up a phone, sent an email or did the bare minimum to alert the media, other media and publications and reporters - including me - would still have tried to cover it even if they were not physically present or attending.

Over the weekend and earlier this week I heard from several media whose sentiment on Netflix and A Bridgerton Affair ranged from very angry and angry, to disappointed and disintered. They don't understand. Some don't care anymore. 

Several are struggling to figure out why Netflix SA PR and publicity bosses are so carelessly lazy and seemingly incompetent when it comes to communciation. They vent to me. 

Meanwhile, Netflix SA and its PR companies keep hugging and air-kissing influencers and other panderers, perhaps wondering why Netflix struggles to get credibility and earned media for its South African media events and truthful reviews and opinions from people on their PR lists - but not really properly engaging with them.

Media and influencers not paying for an experience, who want to attend "things" mostly because there's liquor and the chance for drinking and a goodie bag and who don't really care for the content or reporting out to their readers and viewers and listeners about what they see and ask and hear, are always going to disappoint you.

More than anything; more than proper, real media coverage, the main aim of these sorts are to be invited to more things, continuing to force a content brand like Netflix SA to rather buy a badly-done advertorial in a broadsheet because it can't bargain on actual journalists to cover a media event because of a lack of media liaison relationships.

It's really way past due for Netflix South Africa, its PR bosses and public relations companies in this country to get a grip on actual media communication and interaction, proper media liaison and understanding and improving its inadequate approach around issues of inclusion, exclusion and diversity.

Dear reader, Bridgerton season 2 debuts on Netflix on 25 March 2022.

by Thinus Ferreira

To mark its one-year anniversary, Netflix's Bridgerton announced that the second season of the British period drama will debut on Friday 25 March 2022 in a video from the cast of the Shondaland-produced series.

Set in Regency Era England, the thoroughly modern-dressed cast are delivered paper (the customary gift for a first anniversary), as they read something that nobody else than the gossip queen of the ton, Lady Whistledown wrote, hoping that they find it informative.

"Bridgerton returns, March 25," the letter reads with the second season that is based on Julia Quinn's second novel in the series, The Viscount Who Loved Me and that predominantly follows Lord Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey), the eldest Bridgerton sibling, and his quest to find a wife.

According to Netflix's detailed synopsis of the second season, Anthony's search for a debutante who meets his impossible standards "seems ill-fated until Kate (Simone Ashley) and her younger sister Edwina (Charithra Chandran) Sharma arrive from India".

"When Anthony begins to court Edwina, Kate discovers the true nature of his intentions — a true love match is not high on his priority list - and decides to do everything in her power to stop the union."

"But in doing so, Kate and Anthony's verbal sparring matches only bring them closer together, complicating matters on both sides. Across Grosvenor Square, the Featheringtons must welcome the newest heir to their estate while Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) continues to navigate the ton whilst keeping her deepest secret from the people closest to her."

While Julie Andrews returns as the voice of Lady Whistledown, main cast additions to the second season include Shelley Conn (Mary Sharma), Calam Lynch (Theo Sharpe) and Rupert Young (Jack).

Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos reveals Bridgerton as streamer's most watched TV show, Extraction and Bird Box as its most-watched films, says Ted Lasso on Apple TV+ is an 'awards-ey show' with very small audience.

by Thinus Ferreira

Netflix has released the video streaming service's top 10 most popular TV shows and films, ranked by number of households that watched, and the overall time spent watching, with Shonda Rhimes' Bridgerton topping the list in the number one spot on both lists, and the film Extraction placed first for most households watching, and the film Bird Box placed first for most time spent watching.

Ted Sarandos, Netflix CEO, spoke at the Vox Media Code Conference on Monday in Los Angeles and gave what he described as "the most comprehensive look so far" at the video streamer's most watched TV shows and films.

Although still largely guarding its viewable information but now tracked independently by Nielsen and other ratings companies for the TV and film industry, Netflix has steadily been moving to become more transparent about its audience numbers.

Streaming services like MultiChoice's Showmax in South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa still remains tight-lipped about its actual users and viewership, issuing only vague, non-descript viewership claims without any actual ratings numbers. 

It's because Showmax and others, although growing, are doing so from a very small base, and ratings would give an indication of how small these services still are compared to legacy broadcast channels and services.

In his speech at the Vox Media Code Conference, Ted Sarandos said that Netflix is "trying to be more transparent with talent; with the market", admitting that Netflix's user data and ratings has been a "big black box, mostly" for the past number of years.

Netflix now counts a "view" of its content when a users streamed something for 2 minutes.

Ted Sarandos showed two slides, with the information that is based on Netflix's own internal monitoring of how its users are consuming its content, and that is based on the data of the first 28-days of release of a title.

The spiced-up period drama Bridgerton from Shonda Rhimes ranks number one on Netflix's list of the TV show that racked up the most views from households, as well as the time spent viewing over 4 weeks, with Bridgerton coming in at 82 million accounts, and 625 million hours watched.

The film Extraction with Chris Hemsworth tops the list as the number one film on the list of households that watched (99 million),with Bird Box in the second spot (89 million), with Bird Box topping the film list of most time spent watching (282 million hours).

Ted Sarandos mentioned that the non-English Korean survival drama series Squid Game that was released on Netflix on 17 September is on track to become the most popular Netflix show ever, and is currently ranking as the number one show globally on Netflix.

"We did not see that coming, in terms of its global popularity," he said, noting that Netflix is "competing with ourselves". 

Ted Sarandos also dismissed Ted Lasso of Apple's Apple TV+ streaming service that last week won several Emmy Awards, as an "awards-ey show" that very likely only has a very small audience. 

Like Showmax, Apple TV+ is also deliberately opaque about releasing any viewership information and has never released ratings data or how many subscribers it has as it lags far behind bigger global streaming services like Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video.

"The thing I'm concerned with over the next decade is, can we continue to execute at scale. To me that's more troubling that any competition in the marketplace," Ted Sarandos said.

Netflix ended the second quarter of 2021 with 209.18 million paid global streaming subscribers.

ALSO READ: MultiChoice's Showmax once again make an unsubstantiated viewership record claim, this time for Devilsdorp - here's what Showmax and some other streamers don't want to tell and don't want you to know.

CORONAVIRUS. Covid-19 cases shutter production on Netflix's Bridgerton and HBO's House of the Dragon in Britain.

by Thinus Ferreira

Two TV series filmed in the United Kingdom have shuttered production after Covid-19 positive cases with filming of the second season of Bridgerton on Netflix that is indefinitely on hold, and with production that has also been paused for a few days on HBO's Game of Thrones prequel series, House of the Dragon.

Bridgerton, produced by Shondaland through Household Pictures, shut down on Thursday due to a Covid-19 positive case, restarted on Friday, but then shuttered production indefinitely after a second Covid-19 positive case, according to The New York Times.

Netflix didn't want to say whether it is crew or cast who had positive Covid-19 results, as cases of the more contagious Delta-variant of the coronavirus is fuelling thousands of new cases in the global pandemic.

House of the Dragon, a prequel fantasy series from HBO revolving around the House of Targaryen while dragons were still numerous in Westeros, halted production that will resume again on Wednesday, according to Deadline.

Sky News reported that filming of Netflix's film version of Matilda The Musical, also produced in the United Kingdom, has also been partially halted, with Netfix that confirmed that someone in one of the production units tested positive for Covid-19.

Netflix commissions a limited Bridgerton spinoff series that will tell a Queen Charlotte origin story together with a young Violet Bridgerton and Lady Danbury.

by Thinus Ferreira

Netflix has commissioned a limited spinoff series from Bridgerton, produced by Shondaland, and announced that it's adding Jess Brownell as showrunner for the 3rd and 4th seasons.

The second season of Bridgerton, based on the series of novels by Julia Quinn, is currently in production with showrunner Chris Van Dusen.

The as-yet-untitled Bridgerton limited spinoff series will be based on the origins of and tell the story of a young Queen Charlotte.

While the spinoff series will centre on the rise and love life of a young Queen Charlotte, it will also tell the stories of young Violet Bridgerton and Lady Danbury. Shonda Rhimes will write the series and serve as executive producer alongside Betsy Beers and Tom Verica.

Bela Bajaria, Netflix vice president of global TV, in a statement says that "Many viewers had never known the story of Queen Charlotte before Bridgerton brought her to the world, and I'm thrilled this new series will further expand her story and the world of Bridgerton".

"Shonda Rhimes and her team are thoughtfully building out the Bridgerton universe so they can keep delivering for the fans with the same quality and style they love. And by planning and prepping all the upcoming seasons now, we also hope to keep up a pace that will keep even the most insatiable viewers totally fulfilled."

Shonda Rhimes, CEO of Shondaland, says "As we continue to expand the world of Bridgerton, we now have the opportunity to devote even more of the Shondaland fold to the Bridgerton-verse".

"We've worked with Jess Brownell for over a decade and have long wanted to find the right project to place in her hands. When it came time to pass the baton, I knew this unique voice was vital to the future of the show."

Chris Van Dusen says "With Bridgerton, I set out to make the period show I always wanted to see. I never could've anticipated how much the rest of the world also wanted to see it".

"I'm deeply proud of this remarkable cast and incredible crew, and I'm so grateful for the enduring support of Shonda, who I've worked alongside for 17 years. Shondaland is where I learned how to make TV, craft incredibly complex characters and how to tell stories."

"And while it's been an incredible journey, I have my sights set on a few new stories to tell. To that end, I'll continue as showrunner - writing and producing season two of Bridgerton - and look forward to seeing Jess continue the magic in seasons three and four."

"I'd also like to thank Julia Quinn and her passionate fans - for embracing my vision for bringing these beloved books to the screen. See you in Grosvenor Square."

Jess Brownell says "It's been incredibly rewarding working alongside Shonda, Betsy, and Chris Van Dusen on the first two seasons of Bridgerton. And now, as these beloved characters are entrusted to me, I cannot wait to lend my unique vision to the next two seasons".

"I feel so fortunate to have found a home at Shondaland and to have the support of Shonda and Betsy as I move forward into this new chapter."

ALSO READ: Lady Whistledown's Society Papers reveals that Bridgerton on Netflix has been renewed for a second season with production starting in March 2021.

Netflix renews Shonda Rhimes period drama Bridgerton for a 3rd and 4th season as production of the second season is underway.

by Thinus Ferreira

Netflix has renewed Shonda Rhimes' Regency-era London-set period drama Bridgerton for two further season - a third and a fourth - shortly after it announced the renewal for a second season in January.

Production on the second season of Bridgerton is currently underway, with the new season that will focus on Lord Anthony Bridgerton's search for true love, with actor Rege-Jean Page who has now exited the series and his character of the Duke of Hastings.

Bridgerton is based on Julia Quinn’s best-selling series of novels and takes place within the Regency-era world of London's so-called upper-crust "ton".

It's here where a group of siblings try to navigate the social interaction rules obsessed community of 19th century London as they try to find love and romance.

"From the first time I read Julia Quinn’s delicious Bridgerton series, I knew these were stories that would captivate a viewing audience," says Shonda Rhimes in a statement.

"But the evolution of this adaptation would not be a success without the many significant contributions of the entire Shondaland team."

"This two-season pickup is a strong vote of confidence in our work and I feel incredibly grateful to have partners as collaborative and creative as Netflix. Betsy and I are thrilled to have the opportunity to continue bringing the world of Bridgerton to a worldwide audience."

Bela Bajaria, Netflix’s vice president of global TV, says in the statement that "Bridgerton swept us off our feet".

"The creative team, led by Shonda, knew the material and delivered a beautiful, emotional, romantic drama for our members."

"They have some exciting plans for the future, and we think audiences will continue to swoon for this show. We're planning to be in the Bridgerton business for a long time to come."

ALSO READ: Lady Whistledown's Society Papers reveals that Bridgerton on Netflix has been renewed for a second season with production starting in March 2021.

Lady Whistledown's Society Papers reveals that Bridgerton on Netflix has been renewed for a second season with production starting in March 2021.

by Lord Thinus Featherington

Breathless news that will surely set the TV ton abuzz, is that Netflix has officially renewed its romance period drama Bridgerton for a second season, with production that will start in March.

The drama series, currently second most-popular on Netflix SA, was watched globally by 63 million people within 28 days; the global video streaming service's 5th biggest original series launch.

Bridgerton was created and produced by Shonda Rhimes' Shondaland and is based on the series of novels by Julia Quinn set in Londen's high-society Regency era, with Phoebe Dynevor as Daphne Bridgerton and Rege-Jean Page as Simon Bassett, the Duke of Hastings.

Earlier this week in its 2020 fourth quarter investor letter, Netflix set hearts aflutter across the television promenade when it noted that Bridgerton "has proven immensely popular and we’ll have some exciting news about Bridgerton later this week".

On Thursday Netflix released a written message from Lady Whistledown, the anonymous, resident gossipmonger keeping tabs on high-society scandals and romantic entanglements and dishing up scintillating secrets through her despised, yet well-read Lady Whistledown's Society Papers.

Netflix didn't announce when the second season will be released, but did note that production will start during the American spring, meaning March 2021, and that Bridgerton's second season will largely revolve around the romantic intrigue of Lord Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey), the eldest Bridgerton sibling.

Here is Lady Whistledown's message:

"The ton are abuzz with the latest gossip, and so it is my honour to impart to you: Bridgerton shall officially return for a second season. I do hope you have stored a bottle of ratafia for this most delightful occasion.

 

The incomparable cast of Bridgerton will return to production in the Spring of 2021. This author has been reliably informed that Lord Anthony Bridgerton intends to dominate the social season. I will have my pen ready to report on any and all of his romantic activities.

 

However, gentle reader, before you set the comments section alight with requests for more sordid details, know that I am disinclined to report on the particulars at this time. Patience, after all, is a virtue.

 

Yours Truly,

Lady Whistledown"

ALSO READ: Netflix passes the 200 million subscriber mark globally with 203 million subs, teases renewal for its Bridgerton period drama from Shondaland.

Netflix passes the 200 million subscriber mark globally with 203 million subs, teases renewal for its Bridgerton period drama from Shondaland.

by Thinus Ferreira

Netflix announced that it has surged to over 203 million subscribers in 2020 and on Wednesday night teased that it would announce a renewal of its popular new period drama Bridgerton for a second and maybe more seasons later this week, likely Friday.

In its 2020 fourth quarter results, the world's biggest video streaming service announced that it had added another 8.51 million paid subscribers worldwide, more than the 6 million it predicted, bringing its total to 203.7 million subscribers worldwide.

This means that Netflix added a whopping 36.6 million subscribers worldwide during the whole of 2020 - its biggest annual gain and surpassing its previous record of 28.6 million new subscriber additions in 2018.

Netflix said that 83% of the new subscribers added in 2020 were from outside the United States and Canada, and that the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region accounted for 41% of its full year's new subscribers in 2020.

After last week when Netflix announced its 2021 film slate with 71 new titles that it will release this year with a new movie every week, Netflix said in its Q4 results that it has more than 500 titles "preparing to launch" or in the post-production stage (including the 71 films).

Netflix is facing a growing surge of competition in the subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) sphere, both in the rollout of new streaming services that are expanding their availability footprint globally, but also in the massive investment that streamers like Disney's Disney+, Discovery Inc.'s Discovery+, Amazon Prime Video, ViacomCBS' Paramount+, Apple TV+, HBO Max, Peacock and others are making in creating new content and stocking their library carousels.

"Discovery recently launched its streaming service. Disney+ is expanding in new countries and with more content. ViacomCBS will be unveiling its plans for Paramount+ in 2021. Combined with the launch of Apple TV+, WarnerMedia’s HBO Max, and NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming services, this signifies that these companies all recognize the future is streaming entertainment, a vision we have been working towards since inception," says Netflix,

"Our strategy is simple: If we can continue to improve Netflix every day to better delight our members, we can be their first choice for streaming entertainment. This past year is a testament to this approach," Netflix said in its Q4 shareholder letter.

"The big growth in streaming entertainment has led legacy competitors like Disney, WarnerMedia and

Discovery to compete with us in new ways, which we’ve been expecting for many years. This is, in part, why we have been moving so quickly to grow and further strengthen our original content library across a wide range of genres and nations," Netflix said.

"Season four of the critically acclaimed The Crown was the biggest season so far and drove new watchers of prior seasons. In its first 28 days, more member households chose to watch season four of The Crown than each of the prior seasons, helping to grow the number of member households that have chosen to watch this series to over 100 million since its initial launch."

In its shareholder letter, Netflix teased an announcement regarding its new period drama Bridgerton from Shonda Rhimes' Shondaland that is currently the second most-watched show on Netflix South Africa.

"The title has proven immensely popular and we’ll have some exciting news about Bridgerton later this week," Netflix said about its 5th most-watched original series globally.

Looking ahead Netflix projects that it will add roughly 6 million new subscribers in the first quarter of 2021. 

Contributing to this subscriber number would be things like the new partnership between South Africa's MultiChoice that added streaming service functionality for Netflix SA and Amazon Prime as apps to its new DStv Explora Ultra decoder in late-2020.

ALSO READ: Netflix announces its 2021 film slate with 71 movies with the video streamer that will release a new film weekly.

TV NEWS ROUND-UP. Today's interesting TV stories to read - 29 December 2020.

Here's the news about TV that I read and that you should read too:     

■ ViacomCBS CEO's plan for its global Paramount+ video streaming service: Breaking news, live sports and a mountain of entertainment content.

■ Donald Trump plans to wreck Fox News (StarSat 261) with his own MAGA digital channel.

"He plans to wreck Fox," says insiders, revealing that the reality TV star wants to start a digital media channel that would stream online since starting a traditional pay-TV channel would be expensive and time-consuming.

■ The new third episode of the 2nd season of Star Wars: The Mandalorian just fixed a major plot hole.

- SEE: Sets in Los Angeles almost completed for season 3.

- Second season of The Mandalorian sets a new standard in phallic symbols.

■ How Bridgerton on Netflix wants to revolutionise romance on TV.

■ Fox News (StarSat 261) identity crisis: Indulge Donald Trump election claims or reject it and watch viewers flee.

■ The film crews being directed from a continent away.

■ Will Disney+ ever be as big as Netflix?

■ CNN (DStv 401) ratings surge as boss Jeff Zucker's fate is uncertain.

■ Deadliest Catch fisherman star Nick McGlashan dead at 33. His cause of death is unknown but he has been struggling with drugs and alcohol for years.

■ When every set looks like Contagion: Inside Hollywood's pandemic year.

■ Apple TV+ was making a new TV show about Gawker. Then CEO Tim Cook found out and canned it.

■ The SABC's Monday meeting with the trade unions Bemawu and CWU over retrenchments has been postponed.

■ PODCAST - Access denied: Like in the industries its reporters cover, the lack of black representation in financial media has created blind spots where predominantly white newsrooms often miss stories about systemic racism or fail to reach an audience of more than one demographic.

■ MUST READ: How America's Trump administration suppresses photography of the Covid-19 pandemic.

How America's government reinforced media restrictions at hospitals to curb the media's ability to show disturbing images from inside hospitals and from preventing journalists from getting access.