Watch: 'Bridgerton' Season 5 Lead RevealedDearest gentle reader, a certain retired gossip columnist's presence may not be so prominent in the ton. With Bridgerton season five watering the budding romance between Francesca Bridgerton (Hannah Dodd) and Michaela Stirling (Masali Baduza), Nicola Coughlan revealed how involved she will be on the show as Penelope Bridgerton. "Season five had started filming already, so I won't be in it very much," the actress shared on the April 29 episode of the Dish podcast. "I'm always happy to come back. I think it's a genuinely lovely job to come back to.