Major ‘Bridgerton’ star taking a step back from upcoming season

Nicola Coughlan revealed she’s taking a step back from her role as Penelope Featherington in the forthcoming fifth season of “Bridgerton.” “It’s bittersweet,” the actress, 39, told E! News in an interview published Tuesday. “I feel like, God, I had such an epic run,” she continued. “I think that’s part of the beauty of that world is it keeps reinventing itself. Every season being a new story — it takes on a different guise.” Nicola Coughlan shared that she’s taking a step back from her role as Penelope Featherington in Season 5 of “Bridgerton.” (Seen here: Coughlan as Penelope Featherington). LIAM DANIEL/NETFLIX The actress (seen here on the Netflix series) referred to it as “bittersweet” during an interview with E! News on Tuesday. ©Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection Coughlan’s character was also the original Lady Whistledown, the secret author behind Regency London’s gossip pamphlet. Under the pen name, Featherington anonymously wrote about the ongoing events and secret affairs throughout the town. Featherington’s identity was later revealed in society amid her romance with Colin Bridgerton — portrayed by Luke Newton — at the end of Season 3 of the Netflix drama. “I feel like, God, I had such an epic run,” she said. (Seen here: Will Tilston, Polly Walker, Florence Hunt, Luke Thompson, Ruth Gemmell, Luke Newton and Coughlan.) ©Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection “I think that’s part of the beauty of that world is it keeps reinventing itself. Every season being a new story — it takes on a different guise,” Coughlan continued. (Seen here: Coughlan as Penelope Featherington and Newton as Colin Bridgerton.) LIAM DANIEL/NETFLIX Viewers watched as Featherington struggled with the loss of anonymity and being unable to write unbiased columns about people’s lives throughout Season 4. Additionally, she came face to face with the consequences of her gossip. Ultimately, she decided to retire as Lady Whistledown to settle into her marriage with Colin and as a mother at the end of the season. However, to viewers’ shock, a new imposter introduced themselves, though their identity has yet to be revealed. Coughlan’s character also portrayed Lady Whistledown, the secret author behind the town’s gossip column. (Seen here: Coughlan as Penelope Featherington and Newton as Colin Bridgerton.) LIAM DANIEL/NETFLIX However, the identity of Coughlan as Lady Whistledown was revealed at the end of Season 3. (Seen above: James Phoon, Bessie Carter, Harriet Cains, Lorn Macdonald, Coughlan.) ©Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection Want more celebrity and pop culture news? Start your day with Page Six Daily. Thanks for signing up! Coughlan is blissfully unaware of who the new writer is, admitting to E! News that she was “really bad at keeping secrets.” “I told everyone and said I was her,” she said. “So they know not to tell me. But I genuinely have no clue and it’s quite nice not to know. I don’t need to know.” The “Derry Girls” alum has yet to be told how many episodes she will be featured in on the upcoming season, set for release in 2027. At the end of Season 4, Featherington gave up her role as Lady Whistledown. ©Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection Coughlan (seen here in 2025) shared that she would return to “Bridgerton” whenever the showrunners called. Dave Benett/Getty Images for BAFTA “I’ll always pop back to ‘Bridgerton’ if they want me,” she said. “If I can be set dressing, I’ll be there. No problem.” Lady Francesca Stirling, portrayed by Hannah Dodd, and Michaela Stirling, played by Masali Baduza, will lead the upcoming season as “Bridgerton’s first same-gender central love story,” per Tudum by Netflix. The duo was brought together by the death of Francesca’s husband and Michaela’s relative, Lord John Stirling, during Season 4. Community Guidelines Welcome to the Page Six Community! Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas in a safe space. In order to do so, we've created a simple set of rules that will improve your experience. Simply put, keep it civil. Your post will/might be rejected if it contains: Spam Insults, profanity, incoherent, obscene or inflammatory language and threats of any kind Attacks on the identity of other commenters or the article's author User accounts will/might be blocked if we notice: Continuous attempts to re-post comments that have been previously moderated/rejected Racist, sexist, or homophobic comments Attempts or tactics that put the site security at risk So, how can you be a power user? Stay on topic and share your passion. Feel free to elaborate to get your point across. 'Like' or 'Dislike' when you are filled with emotions! Protect your community. Use the report tool to alert us when someone breaks the rules. Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Don't forget, freedom of speech is not the freedom of reach!