Stories from the set

The film is based on Helen Fielding's novel «Bridget Jones's Diary» (Bridget Jones's Diary, 1998).

For the role of Bridget Jones, Renée Zellweger gained 25 pounds.

While preparing for the role, Renée Zellweger worked for one month at a British publishing company. Using a pseudonym and easily imitating a posh accent, she was never recognized by anyone.

Renée Zellweger preferred smoking herbal cigarettes during filming rather than real tobacco ones.

The names of both lead actors, Colin Firth and Hugh Grant, are mentioned in the book that the film was adapted from. The first actor appears in the chapter «Tuesday, 24 October», and the second in the chapter «Wednesday, 16 August». Colin Firth is also mentioned in the book's sequel «Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason» as a celebrity guest.

Besides the film's very resemblance to Jane Austen's «Pride and Prejudice», many experienced filmmakers who had repeatedly taken part in adaptations of Austen's novels were involved in making the film. Andrew Davies wrote the screenplay for the miniseries «Pride and Prejudice» (1995), which starred Colin Firth and Crispin Bonham-Carter. Hugh Grant and Gemma Jones appeared in the film «Sense and Sensibility» (1995). And Embeth Davidtz can be seen in «Mansfield Park» (1999).

While audiences were eager to see Hugh Grant playing a role the exact opposite of his usual image, one of the film's screenwriters, Helen Fielding, ironically described Grant in real life as more like Daniel Cleaver than most of his "normal" characters.

To make her "English" accent sound more natural, Renée Zellweger kept "using" it in her everyday life outside the film set as well. Hugh Grant once remarked that he heard her constantly speaking only with the "English" accent, right up until the final party after filming wrapped, when he heard her speaking in a "very strange voice." He soon realized that this was her natural way of speaking.

In Germany the film was released under the title "Bridget Jones – Schokolade zum Frühstück," which meant "Bridget Jones – Chocolate for Breakfast."

Among the candidates for the lead role were such British movie stars as Kate Winslet and Helena Bonham Carter.