‘Bridgerton’ Fans Can’t Stop Recommending ‘Sanditon’ on PBS

Finished with Bridgerton on Netflix but can’t stop craving Regency-era romance? You simply must check out Sanditon on PBS. At least, that’s what fans of the new Shonda Rhimes-produced series are saying on Twitter. 

Without giving too much away, Sanditon follows Charlotte Heywood (Rose Williams), a Sussex girl who comes, unexpectedly, to stay in the up-and-coming seaside town of Sanditon, and makes the acquaintance of the Parker brothers, forming a little love triangle. A big part of the show’s appeal, at least according to the Twitter fandom, is Theo James as Sidney Parker.

Though the series first aired in England in 2019, it didn’t air on PBS until January 2020. Now, Bridgerton fans are currently rallying to give the canceled PBS Masterpiece mini-series a second season on a platform like Amazon, Netflix, or Hulu.

Here’s where things get tricky. Bridgerton, which is based on a series of romance novels by Julia Quinn, making at least a second season extremely likely. The show combines elements of the different books, but the source material gives fans some indication of where the story is heading, and the fact that it comes from Shondaland means it’s probably built to run for a while (Scandal and How To Get Away With Murder both lasted many seasons, and Grey’s Anatomy is still on). 

Sanditon, however, is a very different story. It’s based on Jane Austen’s last novel, an unfinished one at that. Andrew Davies, who adapted the series from the chapters Austen left behind, had to continue the characters’ stories on his own. Davies had hoped the story could continue even beyond the original eight episodes: speaking with the Radio Times about a possible second season.

“We haven’t had much chance to talk about it yet, but yeah, I do have a few ideas,” Davies said. “And in fact the way we end series one, I hope we then get to a point where an audience says, ‘You can’t leave it at that!’” Well, they certainly hit that mark, judging by these fans’ reactions.

Unfortunately, the show was officially canceled by its British home channel, ITV, before it had even aired in the U.S. “We would have loved it to return, but unfortunately we just didn’t get the audience that would make that possible for us, which is heartbreaking for everybody involved in this wonderful adaptation,” A spokesperson said back in 2019. “Sanditon is yet to air in the US and we hope they may find a way of continuing with this series.” 

Maybe a bump from spillover Bridgerton viewers will give this show the boost it needs to come back or be picked up by another network? That’s what these fans are hoping for!

While Bridgerton is streaming on Netflix, Sanditon is available on PBS.