Will Marina Find Out About Penelope & Lady Whistledown in Bridgerton S3?
Or has she already figured it out?
For several months, the vast Bridgerverse fandom has been on the edge of their seats, eagerly anticipating Bridgerton Season 3, which will focus on the romance between Colin Bridgerton and Penelope 'Pen' Featherington.
As the female lead of the season, Penelope's role implies that the Lady Whistledown storyline will take centre stage, and Pen's significant secret is likely to be disclosed. This development prompts numerous intriguing questions about how the writers will handle Lady Whistledown's secret identity being exposed and how those who have been harmed by her column in the past will respond.
Potentially, the person who suffered the most from the mystery writer's revelations is Marina Crane (née Thompson). It would be fascinating to see her reaction to the news that her friend Penelope was the cause of her downfall.
What Happened To Marina
A quick recap: Marina was a pivotal character in Season 1. She arrived at the Featheringtons as the daughter of a friend (or, more accurately, a debtor) for the social season, intending to find a suitable husband.
Attractive and intelligent, Marina quickly became one of the most sought-after debutantes and attracted many admirers. However, it was soon revealed that Marina was pregnant with Sir George Crane's child, and he had vanished.
The situation called for desperate measures, so Marina decided to ensnare Colin Bridgerton in marriage and pretend the child was his. Pen, who was privy to Marina's secret, couldn't allow this to happen and wrote about her predicament in Lady Whistledown's column, shattering the engagement and Marina's reputation.
Fortunately, after it was disclosed that George had perished in a war, his brother, Phillip, married Marina.
Will Marina Find Out That It Was Pen Who Outed Her?
Although Marina was probably hurt the most by Lady Whistledown's gossip column, this storyline is unlikely to resurface in Season 3. Actress Ruby Barker, who portrays Marina, confirmed via Instagram that she will not be returning for the upcoming episodes.
That probably indicates that Marina will meet a similar tragic end as her character in the book and die at some point. Consequently, viewers will never learn how she would have reacted to Pen being the ton's gossip writer.
Marina Might Already Know
That said, it is plausible to speculate that Marina has already deduced Penelope's secret pastime. After all, Marina is intelligent and practical, and Pen was among the few people who knew her secret. Furthermore, Penelope attempted to dissuade her from marrying Colin, even pointing out that he was more than a friend to her.
In this scenario, we already know how Marina responded. Her Season 2 speech to Colin about not dwelling on the past and focusing on the future could suggest she didn't hold a grudge against Penelope but understood and forgave her. After all, she placed Pen in an untenable situation by trying to trap the man she loved.