LONDON, UK — The fictional kingdom of the “Bridgerton” world has a very real code of etiquette. So, we asked the cast of the popular Netflix show to get us up to speed with some of the rules of polite society.
First and foremost are the conventions required when meeting the queen, played in the series by Golda Rosheuvel.
”As a man,” Rosheuvel said, “you need to bow.”
But never a deep, lingering bow.
“It’s a nod,” she said.
“It’s like a little arch of the back,” added Claudia Jessie, who plays Eloise Bridgerton, “Then you wiggle your bum and it’s done.”
The veracity of that last piece of advice cannot be confirmed.
“You’d look down, you’d wait for her to talk to you first,” said the very thoughtful Bessie Carter, whose Prudence Featherington character is actually not known for politeness. “You probably wouldn’t make direct eye contact.”
Cast member Martins Imhangbe added, “You’d probably have something to present. So, maybe you would have prepped a joke or some special trick, a party trick.”
Attracting a suitor may be best accomplished with a flushed face and a flutter of the wrist.
“Oh, fans!” Polly Walker, who plays Lady Featherington, exclaimed. “There’s a whole fan ‘language.’”
A more fraught situation might be the act of standing in the presence of passed gas in the ballroom. Should a proper gentleman or lady deflect blame, or bring attention to who dealt it?
“I think it depends upon who you stood next to,” Jessie said. “Because if you stood next to, like, a duke or someone with a title, you want to be careful.”
But never accept blame for the misdeed on another’s behalf.
“No one wants a martyr around,” Jessie laughed.
The rules of etiquette can be baffling, even to the characters of the “Bridgerton” universe.
“We don’t know how to behave,” said Emma Naomi, who plays society newcomer Alice Mondrich.
“Lady Bridgerton” Ruth Gemmell knows how how a lady politely ends a ballroom conversation.
”They go and get a glass of lemonade,” she said.
Her co-star, Adjoa Andoh agrees, and politely drifts away from the chat:
“Do excuse me. I must just…”
And, just like that, the etiquette lesson comes to an end.
Now if you’ll excuse us, the second half of "Bridgerton" Season 3 is now streaming on Netflix. We must be going.
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