On a recent spring night in London鈥檚 bustling Borough Market, I gazed in awe at a space I had seen many times before but only on screen: the living room that once belonged to Bridget Jones, one of my all-time favourite movie characters. On the table in front of me sat a coupe of blue 鈥渟oup,鈥澛燼 nod to Bridget鈥檚 revolting first course from the hilariously botched birthday dinner she cooked for her besties.
However, the culinary creation I sipped on wasn鈥檛 soup at all but a frothy, blue cocktail, which, unlike its ill-fated inspiration, tasted downright divine. Sweet, coconutty and irresistible, Bridget鈥檚 Blue (Soup) is a bestseller at , a Thai food hot spot with a hip yet cosy vibe. But for guests like me, the restaurant is best known as Bridget鈥檚 beloved flat from her singleton days.
Khao Bird is a Thai food hot spot located in Bridget Jones鈥檚 former living room.
Rebecca DicksonI鈥檝e been a superfan of Helen Fielding鈥檚 charming, relatable protagonist since she first stumbled into pop culture three decades ago 鈥 long before the phrase 鈥set-jetting鈥 was coined to describe the current trend of travellers flocking to film locations.
So when I learned that Ren茅e Zellweger鈥檚 fourth reprisal of this iconic character聽would be released in theatres in only a few countries, including England, London was calling. A Bridget-themed trip was the perfect excuse for a girlfriends鈥 getaway, so I invited my dear friend Silvia, and we set out to follow in the footsteps of the rom-com heroine I鈥檝e practically grown up with. Toasting to Bridget with a cocktail named in her honour, right in her former living room, was the ideal opening scene for our trip.
Named after a hilariously botched dish, Bridget鈥檚 Blue (Soup) is a bestseller at Khao Bird.
Rebecca DicksonOn our first morning, Silvia and I caught a showing of 鈥淢ad About the Boy,鈥 expecting a lighthearted chick flick. Instead, I found myself in tears multiple times.
The film deftly portrays poignant themes of loss and identity while Bridget navigates a life chapter I鈥檓 also enmeshed in: the middle-age challenges of juggling parenting, work and love in a world that sometimes mistakes us for grandparents. But there were plenty of laughs, too, and seeing the London landmarks we were also glimpsing in real life added an extra thrill.
After the movie, we returned to Bridget鈥檚 old neighbourhood for a late lunch at . Nowadays, it鈥檚 an upscale wine bar. But for Bridget fans, it鈥檚 better known from the first film as the Greek restaurant where the hysterical (and , I later learn) brawl breaks out between her love interests: upstanding lawyer Mark Darcy, played by Colin Firth, and Hugh Grant鈥檚 Daniel Cleaver, the publishing playboy.
In true Bridget style, Silvia and I enjoyed a leisurely, boozy afternoon of girl talk over bubbles and bites, while watching the crowds walk past the window that Mark and Daniel had famously crashed through. (Another fun fact I soon learn: It was sugar glass.)
We resumed our the next morning, joined by another dear friend, Johanna, who happened to be in town. This time, we enlisted an expert from the award-winning to lead us on a private walking tour of filming locations from all four Bridget Jones movies. (This summer, the company will also launch taxi tours specific to 鈥淢ad About the Boy鈥 locations.)
Fiona Johnston, a guide with Brit Movie Tours, will lead travellers to filming locations from all four Bridget Jones movies.
Blane BachelorOur outstanding guide, Fiona Johnston, a lifelong Londoner, was a fellow superfan, and she and I were soon firing off quotes and cackling like hyenas. Johnston boasted an astounding breadth of knowledge about the films, including those fight-scene tidbits, and the lesser-known history behind certain sites.
Outside the Clink Street flat that served as Daniel鈥檚 sleek bachelor pad, she told us Zellweger鈥檚 comedic timing helped her land the role over British actors. We also learned that the beautiful , where the memorial service from 鈥淏ridget Jones鈥檚 Baby鈥 was filmed, is the central church of the Royal Air Force.
Post-tour, two-and-a-half hours and nearly 12,000 steps later, I had a new-found appreciation for the films, the actors and London itself. From past trips (and living in the city鈥檚 outskirts when I was a kid), I was already well acquainted with the most famous tourist attractions, like Big Ben and Kensington Palace. But this time around, I appreciated getting to know other areas, including Bridget鈥檚 bustling neighbourhood, plus a few quieter, quirkier corners with their own stories to tell. Seeing it all in the spirit of Bridget 鈥 and alongside cherished friends 鈥 was the cherry on top.
Writer Blane Bachelor, far right, with her friends on their 鈥榮et-jetting鈥 getaway to London.
Blane BachelorOn my last day, I took the tube to Hampstead, the tony north London neighbourhood featured prominently in 鈥淢ad About the Boy.鈥 I hailed a cab, and the driver, Kenny, also a fan of the movies after watching them with his girlfriend, whizzed me around to various locations that Johnston had written down, including Bridget鈥檚 Victorian townhouse, which was being renovated for some lucky inhabitant.
In , a park with rolling hills and knockout skyline views, I managed to find the 鈥渕agical man tree,鈥 as Bridget calls it during a funny scene in which two handsome men magically appear to help her and her kids after they get stuck while climbing it.
Instead of hugging it as Bridget did (I already have a magical man at home, thank you very much), I snapped a few photos of this unlikely tourist attraction 鈥 a seemingly ordinary, old oak tree 鈥 then made a mental note to spend more time in this delightful area on my next trip.
The Light Bar, housed in a former Victorian power station, appears in 鈥淭he Edge of Reason.鈥
The Light BarFor my final toast to Bridget, I headed that evening to , housed in a former Victorian power station in the trendy Shoreditch neighbourhood. The bar appears in the second film, 鈥淭he Edge of Reason,鈥 during a scene when Bridget鈥檚 friends convince her over drinks to dump Mark because it appears he鈥檚 cheating on her.
When I arrived, the bar was already packed with suited-up blokes clinking pints, and fashionable women laughing over wine. I managed to snag a prime corner table, but no relationship advice would be dispensed across it 鈥 I was all by myself.
After ordering a cocktail, I peeked at my fellow patrons聽and felt a twinge of loneliness. Without my own trusty girlfriends, there was only one thing to do. I reached into my purse, pulled out my journal 鈥 rather, my diary 鈥 and started writing.
Blane Bachelor travelled with some trip support from Visit London, which did not review or approve this article.
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