Latest news with #TheEdgeofReason
Metro
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
Bridget Jones author claims she was repeatedly groped while working at BBC
The woman behind Bridget Jones has claimed she was groped repeatedly while working for the BBC. Helen Fielding, who penned the legendary 1996 novel Bridget Jones's Diary and spawned a multimedia franchise, joined the BBC as a researcher in 1979. After leaving the broadcaster, she worked as a journalist, where the idea for the Bridget Jones character began as an unattributed column in The Independent. From there, she became a novelist and penned several books, including three Bridget Jones novels—Bridget Jones's Diary in 1996, The Edge of Reason in 1999, and Mad About the Boy in 2013. The books became a major film franchise, with Renée Zellweger in the titular role of Bridget, starring opposite love interests Hugh Grant and Colin Firth. As a result, Helen, 67, is one of the biggest names in British publishing, but her latest story comes from when she was making her first steps in the industry. She joined the BBC at the age of 21, when, as she told the Soho Summit, workplace sexual harassment went unpunished across several industries and trades. 'I worked at the BBC when I was in my 20s, and you just got used to the fact that people would actually put their hand on your boob while they were talking to you about work,' she said, via MailOnline. Helen did not directly name any of her BBC colleagues in relation to her claims, nor did she directly accuse any other members of staff at the organisaiton. Describing groping as an everyday occurrence, Helen added that women her age were expected to 'put up with' harassment from older male colleagues. When contacted for comment, a BBC spokesperson told Metro in response to Helen's claims: 'We're sorry to hear of these experiences. Attitudes and behaviours have changed significantly in the last 40 years and the BBC—like the rest of society—is very different place now to what it was then.' Elsewhere, Helen also reflected on the industry as a whole and the era of Bridget Jones: 'I first wrote Bridget pre-#MeToo—and when I look at that film now, I can't believe that that stuff was going on,' she said of the male characters in the novel who harass Bridget on a daily basis. One such character, who makes it into the 2001 film adaptation, is Bridget's leering boss, Mr. Fitzherbert, whom Bridget refers to as 'Mr. T**spervert'. Speaking about the movie industry today, Helen argued that, while they might be better disguised, the same attitudes remain from the 1970s and 1980s. More Trending 'You still have to fight much harder as a woman, even a successful woman, and you get treated in ways that men would not be treated. And there's no denying that it is still going on and it needs to change.' Helen's first novel was a 1994 satirical story titled Cause Celeb, which was based on the relationship between celebrities and refugees in a fictional East African country. Aside from the Bridget Jones novels, she also penned the 2003 comic spy book Olivia Joules and the Overactive Imagination, which tells the story of a woman following a man she believes to be a terrorist. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: Xzibit reveals $1,000,000 reason he rejected Pimp My Ride return MORE: Disgraced BBC star Huw Edwards 'refuses requests to return £200,000 he was paid after arrest' MORE: 'I wrote huge songs with popstars at their lowest points but turned down millions'
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
How to experience London like Bridget Jones
This article was produced by National Geographic Traveller (UK). Shot in the capital over the course of two decades, the four Bridget Jones films chart both the evolving relationships of their titular heroine and the changing face of London itself. Based on a satirical newspaper column-turned-books by Helen Fielding, the series is partly a love-letter to the city the British writer calls home, featuring contemplative walks across the bridges of the Thames, lengthy chats in raucous bars, declarations in cosy restaurants and interventions by kindly cab drivers. Here's how to follow in Bridget's footsteps in London. In the latest film, Mad About the Boy, Bridget lives in the affluent North London suburb of Hampstead. Flask Walk, a cobbled street lined with shops, pubs and cafes, was briefly closed for filming — and key scenes were also shot on Hampstead Heath. The city's green lung, this 800-acre patch of urban wilderness is made for exploring. Begin at Parliament Hill — which also featured in a dream sequence in an earlier film and has captivating views over the skyline — before heading on to neo-classical villa Kenwood House for coffee. Bridget buys the ingredients for a disastrous dinner party at Borough Market in Southwark — still the city's finest culinary destination, with hundreds of small-scale producers and street food stalls gathered beneath its distinctive green arches. Exterior shots show Bridget's flat sitting above traditional pub The Globe — a space now occupied by restaurant Khao Bird. Its menu features Thai dishes much like those Bridget sampled in Bangkok for 2004's The Edge of Reason, plus a blue-coloured, rum-based cocktail named in honour of her infamous soup. Thankfully, the taste is vastly superior. In the two decades since the first Bridget Jones film appeared, London's Kings Cross has been transformed from a notorious no-go zone to an atmospheric hangout spot. At its heart is Granary Square, a European-style piazza filled with 1,080 jet fountains and lined with restaurants and bars — Bridget and her trio of trusted friends bag a waterside table for drinks in 2016's Bridget Jones's Baby, but try The Lighterman's wraparound terrace for panoramic views over the square. Partly designed by the same architect as Versailles' palace gardens, Greenwich is one of the city's grandest royal parks — and best reached by boat from one of several Central London piers. Spend an afternoon relaxing on its grassy slopes like Bridget and her friend Shazza in Bridget Jones's Baby, taking in the impressive views over the baroque Old Royal Naval College, the Thames River and the skyscrapers of Canary Wharf. Stratford in East London saw massive regeneration ahead of London's 2012 Olympic Games, including the construction of a stylish new swimming pool designed by Zaha Hadid. In the franchise's third film the heroine attends antenatal classes here — glimpsed in the background is its inflatable obstacle course, Aqua Splash: great fun and rich with potential for some Bridget-esque slapstick. Afterwards, take time to explore the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park or hop on the Tube for the short ride to Shoreditch and cocktails at The Light Bar, a repurposed power station featured in The Edge of Reason. The source of Bridget's legendary big knickers remains unknown, but she prepares for a fancy dinner with boyfriend Mark Darcy by buying a corset at Mayfair lingerie store Rigby & Peller, formerly bra-fitter to the Queen. The first film also sees a trouser-less Bridget pursue Darcy down Threadneedle Street, in the city's financial district or 'Square Mile'. She catches up with him buying her a new diary in The Royal Exchange, a colonnaded shopping arcade, originally built in 1571, and now lined with upmarket shops. All gothic revival spires and fantastical turrets, this impressive Victorian structure stands proudly on the Strand and houses both the High Court and the Court of Appeal. The building can be accessed as part of a pre-booked tour to see the workplace (and spiritual home) of Bridget's 'human rights lawyer boyfriend' in 2001's Bridget Jones's Diary. Helen Fielding based her Mr Darcy on the leading man in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and 2025 marks 250 years since the birth of this similarly celebrated novelist. (A guide to Regency Bath on the anniversary of Jane Austen's birth.) To subscribe to National Geographic Traveller (UK) magazine click here. (Available in select countries only).
National Geographic
15-02-2025
- Entertainment
- National Geographic
How to experience London like Bridget Jones
This article was produced by National Geographic Traveller (UK). Shot in the capital over the course of two decades, the four Bridget Jones films chart both the evolving relationships of their titular heroine and the changing face of London itself. Based on a satirical newspaper column-turned-books by Helen Fielding, the series is partly a love-letter to the city the British writer calls home, featuring contemplative walks across the bridges of the Thames, lengthy chats in raucous bars, declarations in cosy restaurants and interventions by kindly cab drivers. Here's how to follow in Bridget's footsteps in London. 1. Wander in Hampstead In the latest film, Mad About the Boy, Bridget lives in the affluent North London suburb of Hampstead. Flask Walk, a cobbled street lined with shops, pubs and cafes, was briefly closed for filming — and key scenes were also shot on Hampstead Heath. The city's green lung, this 800-acre patch of urban wilderness is made for exploring. Begin at Parliament Hill — which also featured in a dream sequence in an earlier film and has captivating views over the skyline — before heading on to neo-classical villa Kenwood House for coffee. 2. Eat at Borough Market Bridget buys the ingredients for a disastrous dinner party at Borough Market in Southwark — still the city's finest culinary destination, with hundreds of small-scale producers and street food stalls gathered beneath its distinctive green arches. Exterior shots show Bridget's flat sitting above traditional pub The Globe — a space now occupied by restaurant Khao Bird. Its menu features Thai dishes much like those Bridget sampled in Bangkok for 2004's The Edge of Reason, plus a blue-coloured, rum-based cocktail named in honour of her infamous soup. Thankfully, the taste is vastly superior. Borough Market, one of London's top food markets, is the location of Bridget's flat. Photograph by robertharding, Alamy 3. Drink in Granary Square In the two decades since the first Bridget Jones film appeared, London's Kings Cross has been transformed from a notorious no-go zone to an atmospheric hangout spot. At its heart is Granary Square, a European-style piazza filled with 1,080 jet fountains and lined with restaurants and bars — Bridget and her trio of trusted friends bag a waterside table for drinks in 2016's Bridget Jones's Baby, but try The Lighterman's wraparound terrace for panoramic views over the square. 4. Hang out in Greenwich Park Partly designed by the same architect as Versailles' palace gardens, Greenwich is one of the city's grandest royal parks — and best reached by boat from one of several Central London piers. Spend an afternoon relaxing on its grassy slopes like Bridget and her friend Shazza in Bridget Jones's Baby, taking in the impressive views over the baroque Old Royal Naval College, the Thames River and the skyscrapers of Canary Wharf. Greenwich Park offers impressive views over Central London and Canary Wharf. Photograph by Karl Hendon, Getty Images 5. Swim at the London Aquatics Centre Stratford in East London saw massive regeneration ahead of London's 2012 Olympic Games, including the construction of a stylish new swimming pool designed by Zaha Hadid. In the franchise's third film the heroine attends antenatal classes here — glimpsed in the background is its inflatable obstacle course, Aqua Splash: great fun and rich with potential for some Bridget-esque slapstick. Afterwards, take time to explore the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park or hop on the Tube for the short ride to Shoreditch and cocktails at The Light Bar, a repurposed power station featured in The Edge of Reason. 6. Shop in Central London The source of Bridget's legendary big knickers remains unknown, but she prepares for a fancy dinner with boyfriend Mark Darcy by buying a corset at Mayfair lingerie store Rigby & Peller, formerly bra-fitter to the Queen. The first film also sees a trouser-less Bridget pursue Darcy down Threadneedle Street, in the city's financial district or 'Square Mile'. She catches up with him buying her a new diary in The Royal Exchange, a colonnaded shopping arcade, originally built in 1571, and now lined with upmarket shops. The Royal Exchange in Central London is now home to luxury shops and restaurants. Photograph by Alexander Spatari, Getty Images 7. Tour The Royal Courts of Justice All gothic revival spires and fantastical turrets, this impressive Victorian structure stands proudly on the Strand and houses both the High Court and the Court of Appeal. The building can be accessed as part of a pre-booked tour to see the workplace (and spiritual home) of Bridget's 'human rights lawyer boyfriend' in 2001's Bridget Jones's Diary. Helen Fielding based her Mr Darcy on the leading man in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and 2025 marks 250 years since the birth of this similarly celebrated novelist. (A guide to Regency Bath on the anniversary of Jane Austen's birth.) National Geographic Traveller (UK) magazine click To subscribe to(UK) magazine click here . (Available in select countries only).
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
What is Bridget Jones author Helen Fielding's net worth? All you need to know
Helen Fielding is well-known as the author of the Bridget Jones novels, which have been adapted into the popular film series. A fourth film called Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, adapted from Fielding's 2013 novel, is set to be released in UK cinemas on Thursday, February 13. It will see Renée Zellweger return to play the title character with other cast members including Chiwetel Ejiofor, Leo Woodall, Isla Fisher and Hugh Grant. All of Fielding's Bridget Jones novels have sold well but what is her net worth? "I think we need to get rid of cougar and toyboy." Ahead of the release of the latest Bridget Jones film, writer Helen Fielding talks about the negative connotations of older women dating younger men.#BBCWato — The World at One (@BBCWorldatOne) February 6, 2025 According to a 2020 article from The Express Fielding had amassed a net worth of £6mill while an article from EL PAÍS English in 2023 said she had a net worth of more than $7.5million (just over £6million). Helen Fielding was born on February 19, 1958, in the town of Morley in West Yorkshire. She read English at St Anne's College, Oxford and then began work at the BBC in 1979 as a regional researcher on the news magazine Nationwide. Fielding progressed to working as a production manager and director on various entertainment shows. She also produced and directed a live satellite broadcast from a refugee camp in Eastern Sudan for the launch of Comic Relief. The creator of our Bridget... Author, Helen Fielding is here!#BridgetJonesMovie — Universal Pictures UK (@universaluk) January 29, 2025 During the 1990s she worked as a journalist and columnist on several national newspapers, including The Sunday Times, The Independent and The Telegraph. Her first novel was released in 1994, called Cause Celeb, which was well-received but had limited sales. She was struggling to make ends meet while working on her second novel when she was approached by The Independent to write a column herself about single life in London. Fielding rejected this idea but offered instead to create an imaginary, exaggerated, ironic comic character. Writing anonymously, she felt able to be honest about the preoccupations of single women in their thirties. The column quickly acquired a following, her identity was revealed and her publishers asked her to write a novel about the character she had created. The paperback of Bridget Jones's Diary was published in 1997 and became a worldwide bestseller. Fielding published a second Bridget novel The Edge of Reason in November 1999, before a film adaptation of the first book was released in 2001. The Edge of Reason was then adapted into a film in 2004 with Fielding contributing to the further adventures of Bridget Jones for The Independent in 2005. Recommended reading: Could Bridget Jones afford her lifestyle now or would she be drowning in debt? How to watch Bridget Jones's Diary and other films in the UK 'What's the point?' - Bridget Jones fans demand Colin Firth returns in new film Fielding carried on Bridget's story in Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy in 2013 and Bridget Jones's Baby: The Diaries in 2016. Bridget Jones's Baby was released as a film in 2016 with the upcoming fourth film in the series to be released in 2025. Fielding has co-written all of the screenplays for the films alongside writers such as Richard Curtis and Abi Morgan.
The Independent
12-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Mad About the Boy is the best Bridget Jones sequel yet – and Renée Zellweger remains sensational
Exalt her as a feminist icon, or decry her obsession with 'having a bottom the size of Brazil' as fuel for several decades-worth of body-shaming hysteria – it doesn't really matter, Bridget Jones is ours. She belongs to the culture, for all the good and toxic thinking she represents. And she has been since 1995, when Helen Fielding first started publishing her column about the Chardonnay-guzzling, chain-smoking perpetual singleton in the pages of The Independent. And it's in that sense of ownership – that she's our Bridget – that her latest cinematic venture, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, succeeds where previous sequels have fallen face-first, perhaps into a musical festival mud pit à la Bridget Jones's Baby (2016). She's more vulnerable here, more honest, and a touch less defined by her frazzled quirks. That's thanks, in part, to the fact it's based on Fielding's third book in the series, which draws from the author's own experiences of grief in order to explore a Bridget (Renée Zellweger) who exists beyond Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) and Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant). Here's the current state of play: Darcy is dead, killed by an unexploded mine while on a humanitarian mission. Cleaver is not, because, despite Grant's insistence that he would not star in the previous (third) film, it both granted him a funeral and a sneaky resurrection. Bridget exists, now, in stasis. She's the mother to two brilliantly patient children who don't bat an eye when they're running late and their spaghetti dinner is on fire. She's also the widow who, not entirely by choice, has become 'effectively a nun'. After some encouragement from friends – Sarah Solemani, James Callis, Shirley Henderson, and Sally Phillips are all back, alongside Emma Thompson in the role of a withering gynaecologist – Bridget once more cracks open the diary and bags herself a double-dip of romantic suitors. Up first is a 29-year-old biochemistry student everyone seems fine with calling Roxster (Leo Woodall, of The White Lotus and One Day fame). Trailing close behind is science teacher Mr Wallaker (Chiwetel Ejiofor), who's really more Mr Darcy than Mark Darcy ever was – stubborn and uptight, yet still irresistibly dashing. Yet director Michael Morris deals with Bridget's combative love life with far more care and subtlety than first sequel The Edge of Reason (2004) ever did. Screenwriters Fielding, Dan Mazer, and Abi Morgan may strive for relevance by squeezing in an episode of 'ghosting' (ie not texting back), yet Bridget and Roxster's age-gap romance – like last year's Anne Hathaway-fronted The Idea of You – puts aside 'cougar' sensationalism to engage sincerely with the idea of navigating love while at different stages in life. And Zellweger, who at this point wears the role like a second skin, never overplays a scene. Bridget is a woman of the people, after all, because she represents how we use performative cheeriness as a defence mechanism. Wine and power ballads take care of the rest. And, sure, both male leads are handed a scene in which circumstance forces them to remove their shirts, all while Bridget's eyes look like they're about to pop out of her head ('ding f***ing dong' as the saying goes), but the Bridget-isms here work with a little bit of a wink and nod, so that even the inevitable appearance of the 'big knickers' doesn't play too overtly as calculated nostalgia. Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, then, is about all things in balance. And that includes having Hugh Grant swan in for a hilarious couple of scenes, but no more. He's the olive in the martini. According to the actor, he wrote much of the part himself, including the refreshingly nuanced view of Daniel Cleaver as both an excellent babysitter (when he's not teaching kids how to make a 'filthy bitch' cocktail), and a terrible father, with a son in Italy he barely speaks to. When it comes to Mad About the Boy, it's less that Bridget Jones has finally matured, and more that she's shown us how human she really is. Dir: Michael Morris. Starring: Renée Zellweger, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Leo Woodall, Jim Broadbent, Isla Fisher, Colin Firth, Hugh Grant. 15, 125 minutes
