Diksha Sundriyal
In Netflix’s ‘Bridgerton,’ the Regency era becomes the backdrop of a series of romances, all focused on one or more Bridgerton siblings. The period drama keeps itself rooted in enough historical facts to not come across as completely baseless. Rather, it exaggerates certain versions of history, and instead of presenting a skewed version of it, the show presents the audience with the what-if version, allowing for more inclusivity in the story.
One of the characters who defines the importance of this approach is Lady Danbury. Played by the fearless and fabulous Adjoa Andoh, Lady Danbury is a force to be reckoned with. She often inspires intimidation, but she is also a kind and loving character who always tries to do right by everyone. Her close friendship with Queen Charlotte (who was a real queen) raises several questions about Lady Danbury’s roots in reality.
The Fictional Lady Danbury Finds Her Soul in Real People
There are only a handful of things in ‘Bridgerton’ where history can be used as a reference, and Lady Danbury is not one of them. She is the representation of the cream of the ton, the upper-class British society that forms the crux of the story in the Netflix series. The character of Lady Danbury was created by author Julia Quinn, but she was mostly a side character. It was the book’s TV adaptation by Shonda Rhimes that led to a lot of changes in the way the characters are presented in the show, and Lady Danbury benefitted from this approach.
In the show, Lady Danbury is presented as a close friend and confidant of Queen Charlotte. The spin-off series focusing on the romance between the queen and her king expands upon the nature of friendship between Charlotte and Lady Danbury. However, considering that the events in ‘Queen Charlotte’ were also heavily fictionalized, a real-life counterpart of Lady Danbury is hard to pin down. In real life, while the queen had quite a few close friends, none were like Lady Danbury. They were either too low on the social hierarchy or were equal to the Queen, making it impossible to compare the dynamic between Charlotte and her in real life.
With no real-life reference to think about, Adjoa Andoh looked towards women in her own life to tap into the fearlessness with which Lady Danbury carries herself. The actress said that through the character, she wanted to “celebrate women,” especially the ones who persevere against all odds and who keep going no matter what the situation. Crediting her mother and grandmother and all the women in her life as the force behind her portrayal of Lady Danbury, Andoh said that she loved the shrewd and calculating nature of Lady Danbury, through which she has learned how to get things done for herself. Even when it comes to Queen Charlotte, despite their friendship, Lady Danbury knows how to push the queen’s buttons.
Talking about Lady Danbury’s dynamism and how it is one of the things she loves about her, the actress said she connected with the women in her family. She talked about the similarities between Lady Danbury and her own mother and how they both are strong personalities who are ready to do whatever it takes to get the job done but also know to enjoy the finer things in life. Calling her mother “ramrod straight and just fabulous,” she said she wanted something similar for her character in ‘Bridgerton.’
Considering all this, it is clear that the character of Lady Danbury was created to serve the plot of the story and would probably have remained a background character, like she is in the books, had it not been for the incredible performance of Adjoa Andoh who elevates the character to a completely different level and connects to it in such a deep way that the character feels all too real to the audience as well.
Read More: How Many Kids Did Lady Danbury Have? What Happened to Them in Bridgerton?
