I’ve mentioned this before, but I love the Bridget Jones character, and I love Renee Zellweger as that character. Even though I didn’t care for the sequel book or film, I still love the franchise, and I was thrilled when they announced the third film over the summer. At the time of the announcement, the start date for the production was left up in the air, and many people assumed that was because it would take Renee Zellweger months to put on her Bridget Jones pounds.

For the first film, Renee put on something like 25 to 30 pounds to play Bridget, and she looked lovely with the extra weight. For the sequel, Renee seemed to put on even more weight, and ended up looking rather puffy and sketchy. I was hoping for a return to the first film’s weight gain, but my hopes were just dashed. A source just told the British magazine Reveal (story via the NY Daily News) that Renee isn’t interested in gaining weight for the role for a third time, and that she’ll most likely wear padding and/or a “fat suit”.

Renee Zellweger famously packed on the pounds to play “Bridget Jones,” but she’ll be faking the fat for the third installment of the popular film franchise, according to a report.

“Renee will be wearing a fat suit in the third film, as it took her a while to lose the weight last time,” a source revealed to British magazine Reveal. “She’s also thinking about the effect quickly putting on and then losing 30 pounds has on her body.”

While some fans and bloggers are worried Zellweger’s portrayal of “Bridget Jones” will be less authentic the third go-round if she dons a fat suit, the actress has voiced concern over gaining weight for the famous role in the past.

“My body is whacked by the time we finish one of those ['Bridget Jones' movies],” Zellweger told the Daily Mail in December 2007.

She went on to tell the Mail how the 2004 fast-food documentary “Supersize Me” scared her.

“I had a panic attack with all the specialists talking about how bad this is for you, long term, putting on that much weight in short periods of time and they’re all saying, ‘You must stop this now or you’re going to die.’ “

[From the NY Daily News]

Oh for goodness sake, Renee. It’s like she never stopped to think that maybe she didn’t have to take off every single little pound she gained for the Bridget Jones films. It’s like she never looked in the mirror and said, “Yes, I am scary skinny, maybe putting on five pounds would be a good thing.” I like her and everything, but I do wonder if she has some serious body image issues. From her too-thin frame, to her trying-too-hard posing, I think Renee has gotten weird.

I also wonder if she’s refusing to put on the weight because she’s in a relationship with Bradley Cooper now, and she thinks that if she gains some weight, it will affect her relationship in a negative way. Maybe it will – God knows what kind of body type Bradley goes for, but I tend to think he would be understanding about the situation.

In one other piece of Bridget Jones-related news, I’ve been hearing some rumors that Colin Firth (Mark Darcy) hasn’t officially signed on for the third film. What’s the hold up? You can’t make the film without Mr. Darcy! The rumors go either way – some saying Colin hasn’t even been approached but that he’d love to sign on, or that Colin has been approached, and is making the producers sweat. The second one might be right on – Colin’s having a little career comeback lately, and many are pegging him for a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his work in Tom Ford’s A Single Man. He might want more money. I know I would ask for more money if I had to star with Renee in a fat suit. That’s a disaster waiting to happen.

Here’s Renee spotted sipping coffee after going shopping in Vancouver on September 13th. Images thanks to INF Photo.

The world premiere of Mamma Mia! held at the Odeon Leicester Square in London, England was a huge success with hundreds of fans all the way from Waterloo to the celebs spending tons of Money, Money, Money on their wardrobe, hair and jewelery. Meryl Streep can do no wrong in her acting career. On the red carpet however, she’s made bigger mistakes than Barbara Walters letting Rosie O’Donnell leave The View.

My first thought is: “Didn’t her stylist see Madonna’s Nothing Really Matters Video? WTF? It’s been done!” My second thought is: “Damn, those Christian Louboutin shoes are kickin’! ‘Atta Girl!”

Amanda Seyfried looks like a barmaid who had to work late on St. Patrick’s Day.

Judging by Colin Firth’s wife Livia Giuggioli’s dress, she really isn’t that happy to be there or that busy of a bee. I mean if she were, she wouldn’t have to advertise it.

Christine Baranski looks lovely, dignified and uber classy. LOVE the color, LOVE the couture trojan feel (yes, I just said Couture Trojan), and any amateur would have paired this sheath with silver shoes, but Ms. Baranksi took the high road with the Midas touch.

Pierce Brosnan looks completely dashing. I’m not digging the busy floral print on wife Keely Shaye-Smith’s dress. She runs the risk of having Colin Firth’s wife trying to pollinate her at the after party.

Mamma Mia opens nationwide in the US on July 18th and Knowing Me, Knowing You, we’ll both be there.

Here’s the trailer:

Thanks to WENN for these pics.

Yesterday Colin Firth was on The Daily Show last night to promote his upcoming movie with Helen Hunt, Then She Found Me. Firth talked about his experiences filming in New York City – mentioning that he’d done all the usual NYC things – “I’m always here for brief periods. I’ve taken in the sights, seen the shows, had my penis photographed…” Jon Stewart makes him go back a bit and relate what happened.

According to Firth, he was in the bathroom at a Broadway show, and while at the urinal noticed a man was taking pictures of him. He asked the man what he was doing, and he responded gruffly (and almost angrily) that he wasn’t taking pictures of him. However he clearly was taking pictures not just of Colin Firth using the urinal but of his penis.

Colin said he tried to push the camera away (which means the guy must have been pretty damn close and pretty damn obvious) – with what he admitted was a slightly girly push. When he started to think he should confront the guy or do something more, he admitted he couldn’t decide what to do, noting, “It’s hard to do when you’re not entirely in your pants.” Touché.

He joked that if you Google “Colin Firth Penis” you’ll probably find the picture out there – and while that doesn’t appear to be the case (yet), there are lots of people referencing his appearance and asking for the picture. Oh and by the way, I only Googled that for research and to see what other people were saying. Not looking. And now I’m uncomfortable.

Here’s the clip from The Daily Show.

The daydreams of thousands of women across the globe have just been shattered – by none other than Mr Darcy himself! Colin Firth, 47, who played Mr Darcy in the best adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, and also Mr Darcy again in Bridget Jones’ Diary, has come out saying that the characters that he and Hugh Grant play in those films do not exist. I’m devastated.

Firth, who appears alongside Uma Thurman in new movie The Accidental Husband, said: “I’ve decided the quintessential Englishman I play doesn’t exist.

“I play him but you don’t run into him very often. There aren’t very many Mr. Darcys out there. I think he’s a figment of our folklore or film lore.

“My character exists in mythology and he may have existed once but now he only exists in the hands of actors.”

Firth also revealed he is bemused that foreign journalists have fallen for the Hollywood image of Englishmen and ignored the legions of rebellious rockers Britain has produced.

He added: “I was questioned about this by a group of Greek journalists recently while making a movie version of Mamma Mia!.

“They were insisting on the stereotypical Englishman, that no Englishman has ever grown his hair long, played the electric guitar or pierced his ear.”

The Melbourne Age

I’m sure I’m not the only one to plan a romantic trip to england, to hang out at the gates of Oxford University and meet a quintessential Englishman, who will obviously fall madly in love with my Australian attitude and we’ll live happily ever after in a moderate sized castle. I’m nothing if not a realist. Now I’ll just have to stay home and marry Hugh Jackman. Don’t tell me he’s married too…

So ladies, if you are planning on hitting England to meet a man with a debonair manner, cute accent and a general Englishness you can’t find anywhere else, but you have seen in film, don’t bother. They don’t exist!

Note by Celebitchy: I dated a typical English guy with a wild streak when I was in my early 20s. He was super charming, and to my naive eyes he was the best thing ever – for a while. He was like Hugh Grant’s character more than Colin Firth’s though. Maybe I’m the one who made him out to be a stereotype and that wasn’t all he was about, but those type of guys do exist, at least for that limited period of time when you’re infatuated and totally blind to reality.

Who are we kidding? This was just an excuse to post hot Colin Firth pictures. He’s shown in his films Bridget Jones’ Diary, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, The Importance of Being Earnest, Pride & Prejudice, Love Actually, and The Accidental Husband.

In the header he is shown at the Rome Film Festival on 10/20/07. He is also seen below with his wife of ten years, Livia Giuggioli, in October and December of last year. Thanks to PRPhotos and Allmoviephoto.

Who has the most enviable figure in the celebrity world?

A UK poll by fitness firm Premier Training International has come up with some less than predictable answers in a hot body poll.

Enviable Women

Myleene Klass – Big Brother contestant
Halle Berry – actress
Jessica Simpson – singer
Madonna – singer
Sophia Loren – actress
Angelina Jolie – actress
Uma Thurman – actress
Jennifer Aniston – actress
Gabby Logan – Strictly Come Dancing contestant

Enviable Men

Daniel Craig – actor
Jonny Wilkinson – rugby player
Brad Pitt – actor
Hugh Grant – actor
David Beckham – soccer player
Orlando Bloom – actor
Johnny Depp – actor
Lee Mead – Any Dream Will Do winner
Colin Firth – actor
Sir Sean Connery – actor

New Zealand Herald

It seems that being over 70 isn’t going to stop you from having an enviable body – Sophia Loren is 73 and Sir Sean Connery is 77. Checking out the pictures on IMDB I can only hope I look that good when I’m that sort of age, although I passed my mirror this morning and turned it to face the wall – but maybe by the time I’m old I’ll look better than I do now. Do you have to be good looking in your youth (I use the term loosely) to look good in your old age?

Also, it’s amazing that three of the celebrities are from reality TV shows. Myleene Klass was on last year’s Big Brother UK edition and she gained notoriety for her physique in a bikini. I’m amazed anyone can remember Big Brother from last year? Who can remember even last night’s reality TV?

Picture note by Celebitchy: Myleene Klass pregnant bikini picture from The Daily Mail. Die another Day, Dukes of Hazzard, and Troy movie stills from allmoviephoto. Brad Pitt Premiere cover from members.fortunecity.com/mattdamon. Shirtless Becks from PRPhotos.

Words you never want to hear again: Postal Worker Stalker. Unfortunately for Colin Firth, he’s hearing these words again.

The 45-year-old postal worker was arrested after she begged her bosses to let her deliver to the £2.5 million home of the 46-year-old actor in leafy Chiswick, west London.

The woman is also understood to have posted fake accounts of meeting her idol on an internet site for fans of Firth, perhaps best known for his role as Mr Darcy in the BBC adaptation of Pride And Prejudice.

Firth, who lives in Chiswick with his 37-year-old wife Livia, became a sex symbol and gained an army of female fans after emerging from a lake in skintight breeches in the 1995 Beeb version of the classic Jane Austen novel.

Staff at the obsessed fan’s depot are understood to have raised the alarm after she applied to swap delivery routes with a colleague.

A pal of the actor, who asked not to be named, said: “Colin is normally very at ease with his fans, but he was aware one woman was veering closer to obsession.”

Life Style Extra

Some reports suggest this isn’t the first time the postal worker has been arrested for the stalking.

If I had a stalker, which is highly unlikely given that I have never emerged sexily from a pond in a wet white shirt and tight breeches, I would be really worried that they had been cautioned twice. And that they continued to be employed by the Royal Mail. Where they might be able to touch my mail, or even do something unsavoury to it. Actually, any postal worker could probably do that. I wonder if they do?

Colin Firth is currently filming Mama Mia the musical movie, where he plays a British banker who might be homosexual. He’ll be warming up his pipes, singing the hit music of ABBA, to tell the tale of a bride-to-be who is unsure of the identity of her father. The potential candidates for fatherhood are Colin, Pierce Brosnan, and Stellan Skarsgård. Which is a combination I doubt we’ll ever see in a real life paternity battle.

I wonder if singing the hit music of ABBA would be enough to put off a potential stalker? I think a compulsion to burst into ABBA songs would be a deal breaker in many relationships.