Bridgerton‘s third season is making way for a new love story as the romance between wallflower and secret gossip columnist Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) and Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) unfolds.
While viewers do know the premise of Season 3, further details beyond the current synopsis have been kept largely under wraps. Picking up with a new season on the Ton’s marriage mart, Penelope is eager to find a husband and put some space between herself and her family. Meanwhile, Colin returns home from his travels abroad to discover his friend Penelope is giving him the cold shoulder after overhearing him say he’d never court her in the Season 2 finale.
Eager to win her favor, Colin offers to help Penelope in her search for a husband through a series of courting lessons. The only problem? The lessons are going to work a little too well. In other words, fans should prepare for plenty of romance. But which scenes are about to be the steamiest?
(Credit: Netflix)
While we can only make predictions based on what the cast has said in various interviews, there are specific moments from Julia Quinn’s book Romancing Mister Bridgerton, which Season 3 is based on. And for fans seeking out crumbs about Season 3, this is a go-to spot for explanations as we break down the moments book fans are most looking forward to and what makes them so steamy.
[Spoiler Alert: The following contains spoilers from Romancing Mister Bridgerton.]
What Is the Carriage Scene?
In the book, Colin follows Penelope when he sees her get into an unmarked carriage. Claiming to worry about her safety, he follows her and discovers she’s Lady Whistledown. Getting in a carriage together to return to Mayfair, Colin questions her and things quickly get hot and heavy, leading to a steamy makeout session. Coughlan hinted at the existence of a carriage scene when she posted an Instagram Story featuring a carriage emoji, albeit a teensy tiny one. “You’ll never guess what I’ve just seen…” she wrote against a black screen which featured a carriage emoji in the corner.
(Credit: Nicola Coughlan via Instagram)
Whether the context of the scene or content will be the same as the book is something fans will have to wait for until the season arrives. It’s also unclear if such a scene would exist in the first half or the second half, meaning that fans could be waiting until June 13th to find out for certain.
What Is the Mirror Scene?
While fans refer to the mirror scene as a scene, it isn’t quite that in the book. According to Quinn’s novel, Penelope and Colin have an engagement party where Lady Whistledown’s “last” column is handed out, triggering Colin who thought Penelope had quit her column. The heated exchange leads them to seek a private place for conversation, and they end up in Colin’s room at the Bridgerton house.
(Credit: Netflix)
Ultimately, the pair ends up consummating their relationship that evening. During the sequence, Colin mentions wanting to make love in front of a mirror. So, it’s up to the show to follow through on this spoken fantasy. The promotional material has certainly hinted at the possibility of such an inclusion, between Season 3’s first poster which sees Penelope looking into a hand-held mirror, and more recently with the video promo featuring Coughlan and Newton in character as they stand together in front of a mirror. The signs are there, it’s just a matter of waiting to see if the teased sequence will become a reality.
What Is the Drawing Room Scene?
In the book, after Penelope and Colin are engaged, they find themselves alone in the Bridgerton drawing room. Their unchaperoned state leads to an afternoon makeout session on one of the couches. Could comments made by Coughlan about her and co-star Newton breaking a piece of furniture allude to this scene from the book? In an interview with Capital FM, Coughlan confirmed: “No, [it was] not a bed.” Leaving only certain kinds of furniture options available. Perhaps a couch?
Only time will tell. Stay tuned to see if these steamy book moments make it into the show, and sound off on the moments you’d like to see come to life in Bridgerton Season 3 in the comments section, below.
Bridgerton, Season 3, Part 1 Premiere, Thursday, May 16, 2024, Netflix
Bridgerton, Season 3, Part 2 Premiere, Thursday, June 13, 2024, Netflix