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The Netflix original series, Bridgerton, premiered on Dec. 25, 2020, and there’s already talk of a second season. Set in 19th century England, it chronicles the lives of the Bridgerton family as they navigate London’s high society. The TV show is Shonda Rhimes’ first project with Netflix since inking a multi-year deal with them in 2017. 

Phoebe Dynevor as Daphne Bridgerton on 'Bridgerton'
Phoebe Dynevor as Daphne Bridgerton on Bridgerton | LIAM DANIEL/NETFLIX © 2020

Bridgerton’s future is uncertain seeing as the program hasn’t been streaming for long at the time of publication. However, Julia Quinn, the author of the best-selling novels that inspired the show, says if it does get a second season, it will include a scene involving a game featured in one of her books. 

Julia Quinn consulted on ‘Bridgerton’ Season 1

The author of the Bridgerton books served as a consultant on the Netflix series, according to The Oprah Magazine. 

She visited the show’s U.K. set in 2019, had coffee with Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor), chatted with Simon Bassett, Duke of Hastings (Regé-Jean Page), and read scripts for each episode. She also got a glimpse of the 7,500 original costumes.  

When she wasn’t on set, Quinn admitted she found herself “ in Seattle desperately looking on social media for bits and pieces of information, just like everyone else.” 

The author made ‘Bridgerton’ creator ‘promise’ a ‘pall-mall’ scene

Rhimes and her production company, Shondaland, are behind Bridgerton but the show’s creator is Chris Van Dusen. Rhimes worked with Van Dusen on ABC’s Scandal and they reunited on the Netflix series.

Now that the program is streaming on Netflix, fans are already wondering about more episodes. Asked by The Oprah Magazine what she’d like to see next on Bridgerton, Quinn admitted she hasn’t given it much thought. 

“I’ll be honest. I really haven’t let myself think much beyond The Viscount Who Loved Me, which is the second book,” she said. 

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But she knows if the show does move forward there will be pall-mall, a game similar to croquet. Quinn made Van Dusen agree it would be featured in future episodes. 

“I did make Chris Van Dusen promise that if we get a second season, there has to be pall-mall [a croquet game from the second novel],” she said. “I told people my consulting has been very minimal, but if there’s no pall-mall, I’m going to consult the hell out of that.”

So, while Bridgerton fans wait to see what the future will hold for Daphne, Lady Whistledown (Julie Andrews), and all the rest, there will at some point be pall-mall. 

Julia Quinn gave creative control to Shonda Rhimes and Chris Van Dusen

As Quinn told The Oprah Magazine, she let Rhimes and Van Dusen do their thing when it came to adapting her books for TV. 

“I was not going to tell Shonda Rhimes how to make television,” she said. 

Quinn read the Bridgerton scripts but admitted nothing in them concerned her enough to bring it up with production. 

“As a consultant, they did send me the scripts, and I think if there had been something big that worried me, I would have spoken up,” the author said. “But there wasn’t. 

She added that she had “a wonderful experience.” 

Watch Bridgerton Season 1 on Netflix.

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