The Guardian view on Bridget Jones and Tom Ripley: characters that speak across time
Editorial: In tone and style they might be very different, but neither has lost their common touch
October 2023
Richard Curtis admits regret over weight jokes and lack of diversity in films
Love Actually and Notting Hill director says jokes calling people chubby ‘aren’t any longer funny’
December 2022
Ranked
The best New Year’s Eve scenes – ranked
We trawl acres of celluloid for the best New Year’s Eves, from romcoms and musicals to gangster flicks and comedies, from parties-for-two to hellishly elaborate dance sequences
April 2021
Bridget Jones’s Diary at 20: a gloriously messy ode to imperfection
While elements of the hit British comedy have aged quite notably, the charm remains as strong as ever as does Renee Zellweger’s Oscar-nominated turn
February 2021
Pant-demic: why Bridget Jones's big knickers are on the rise in lockdown
Searches for ‘comfy’ and ‘high-waisted’ underwear are up as we spend Valentine’s Day at home
December 2020
TV review
Being Bridget Jones review – a sense of humour that came to define an era
Marking 25 years since Helen Fielding’s creation first appeared in a newspaper column, the stars of the films and many more line up to offer real insight
Bookish fun on TV and radio to enjoy this Christmas
There is plenty for everyone to enjoy, including Zog and the Flying Doctors, a Bridget Jones documentary and an Upstart Crow Christmas special
No buts: Keir Starmer did not inspire Helen Fielding's Mark Darcy
Author lays rumour to rest that her Bridget Jones character was based on the Labour leader
July 2020
I can’t believe the sexism in Bridget Jones’s world, says Helen Fielding
Twenty five years on, the creator of the love-lorn, diet-crazed journalist is shocked by all the bum and boob jokes aimed at her heroine while at work – experiences based on the author’s life
June 2020
My favourite film aged 12
My favourite film aged 12: Bridget Jones's Diary
Garrulous and inappropriate, Renée Zellweger’s heroine drove home the farce of impossible, gendered standards. I couldn’t have had a better guide for my teen years
January 2020
Shortcuts
Was Mark Darcy based on Keir Starmer? Here’s the definitive answer
The clean-cut candidate for Labour-leader may suit the part of the Bridget Jones character, but is it a truth universally acknowledged?
August 2018
Help Me! by Marianne Power review – can self-help books really change your life?
Power’s expanded blog on living each month according to a different manual floats over Bridget Jones and Fleabag territory
January 2018
Culture webchats
Shirley Henderson webchat – your questions answered on Trainspotting, Moaning Myrtle and singing Dylan
The Scottish star, who is currently in Girl from the North Country, talked about Harry Potter, curries with Shane Meadows and finding a ‘sweet agony’ in her characters
May 2017
Helen Fielding says Bridget Jones books are not anti-feminist
Fielding says humour is a ‘very powerful tool’ and describes being able to laugh at yourself a mark of strength, not a weakness
April 2017
Happy 50th birthday Adrian Mole
Sue Townsend’s teenager hit middle-age before our eyes, but alongside Harry Potter, Bridget Jones and Updike’s Rabbit, he is part of a tradition of characters ageing with the reader
September 2016
Sarah Solemani: ‘I had to hide my pregnancy. I worked until I was due’
Bridget Jones is a glorious emissary from a better age
Zoe Williams
July 2016
Five best moments
Celia Imrie: five best moments
As the actor brings her comic talents to bear on the Ab Fab movie, we look at her playful turns on the big screen
April 2016
The Little Library Café
Food in books: (not) blue soup from Bridget Jones’s Diary by Helen Fielding
Kate Young muses on the pleasures of friendship and explains how to make the soup from Bridget Jones’s Diary – without it turning blue
March 2016
Bridget Jones doesn’t need to be a perfect feminist
Laura Snapes
The new Bridget Jones film has already been criticised for its dated portrait of women. But to demand ideologically flawless female characters misses the point
