Hold the Chardonnay  

Isabel Berwick |The Financial Times – October 14, 2016

This year marks the 20th anniversary of Helen Fielding’s first Bridget Jones novel, chronicling the diary of a hopeful, accident-prone, Chardonnay-swilling “singleton” in London.

Bridget became a global phenomenon. To tie in with the opening of the third film in the franchise, starring Renée Zellweger and Colin Firth as her on-off love interest Mark Darcy, Fielding has produced an accompanying book. Bridget is pregnant – but she doesn’t know which of two men is the father. The usual funny and poignant mishaps ensue, written in the confessional style.

Fielding’s narrative diverts from the screen version: notably that feckless Daniel Cleaver, the original “fuckwit” in Bridget’s life (Hugh Grant reportedly refused to appear in the third film) is, gratifyingly, very much alive and central to the plot of the novel. “VG”.