Bridget Jones has cemented her place in cinematic history with a statue in London’s iconic Leicester Square, joining the ranks of beloved characters like Mary Poppins and Harry Potter. The unveiling ceremony, held to celebrate 25 years since the release of the first film, “Bridget Jones’ Diary,” was attended by Oscar winner Renee Zellweger, who has portrayed the titular character in all four movies.
Zellweger expressed her surprise and delight at the statue, which depicts Bridget with her hair tied back, wearing a mini skirt, and holding a pen and diary. “It’s pretty crazy… it’s kind of strange. It’s not something that you… ever expect… it’s quite a surprise,” she told Reuters. “I mean, she’s adorable… she’s really cute. Looks like Bridget to me”.
The character of Bridget Jones was created by author Helen Fielding over 30 years ago, initially featured in a newspaper column detailing her love life. The first book, “Bridget Jones’s Diary,” was published in 1996, followed by three more. The film adaptation, starring Zellweger alongside Hugh Grant and Colin Firth, was released in 2001, with subsequent movies “Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason” (2004), “Bridget Jones’s Baby” (2016), and “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” (2025).
Fielding expressed her pride and gratitude at Bridget’s enduring popularity, saying, “My daughter’s generation now like Bridget, and that means a huge amount to me because it hardly ever happens. So I feel very, very lucky, and yeah, I’m proud of Bridget”
The Bridget Jones statue is part of Leicester Square’s Scenes in the Square trail, launched in 2020, featuring sculptures of film characters. The trail also includes statues of Laurel and Hardy, Batman, and other iconic figures .
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