Two stunning period dramas released new preview trailers today.  “Dearest gentle reader,” narrates Julie Andrews, who voices Lady Whistledown, as various members of the court are delivered her dispatches. “Did you miss me?” She then goes on to say that as the search to uncover who she is has escalated, she’s been “honing my skills — no, even better: I’ve been sharpening my knives.”

She’s talking about Netflix’s BRIDGERTON which was a sensational success in 2020 thanks in no small part to the presence of Jonathan Bailey as Anthony Bridgerton and the equally handsome Regé-Jean Page as Simon Bassett.  Their performances alone assured a very large queer following for these tales of wealth, lust, and betrayal set against the backdrop of Regency-era England, seen through the eyes of the powerful Bridgerton family.

The trailer teases the much-anticipated romance between Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) and newcomer Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley), which will be the centerpiece of the season — while also leaning hard into the show’s Lady Whistledown aspect, the anonymous gossip chronicler who in the finale was revealed to be Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan).

The second season of “Bridgerton” will premiere on March 25 BUT there is one piece of very sad news that Season 1 breakout star Regé-Jean Page, who played Simon Basset, the Duke of Hastings, has left the show.  Shame !!!

 

 

Meanwhile, if you prefer your period dramas without sex (!) you should know that Focus Features have just released the trailer of DOWNTON ABBEY: A NEW ERA. The much-anticipated cinematic return of the global phenomenon reunites the beloved cast as they go on a grand journey to the South of France to uncover the mystery of the Dowager Countess’ newly inherited villa.

Dame Maggie Smith  and all the regulars are joined by new cast members Hugh Dancy (pictured) Laura Haddock, Nathalie Baye, Dominic West, Jonathan Zaccaï

Focus Features 
will release 
DOWNTON 
ABBEY:A NEW 
ERA in theaters 
on May 20, 2022