This article contains spoilers for Bridgerton seasons one and two

Dearest reader, if you're anything like us then you're feeling a big Bridgerton-sized hole in your life after finishing (read: binge-watching) season two of the hit Netflix show in record time.

And, while we're going to have a while to wait before the Bridgertons, Featheringtons and Lady Whistledown herself are all back on our screens, the good news is that Netflix has already confirmed that seasons three and four are both on the way – in fact they were renewed way back in April 2021.

As fans will know, the Shondaland hit is based on a series of eight books by historical romance writer Julia Quinn, with the first instalment following Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor)'s first season and subsequent love story with the Duke of Hastings (Regé-Jean Page) and series two focused on the eldest Bridgerton sibling Anthony (Jonathan Bailey)'s love-hate relationship with Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley).

But what can we expect from Bridgerton season three, including the plot, cast and potential release date? Here's everything we know so far...

The latest news on the Bridgerton season 3 cast is that Hannah New, the star of Starz’ series Black Sails, is the latest recruit, as reported by Deadline.

Hannah will play a widow embracing her sexual freedom and financial independence after losing her husband at an early age.

Back in July, we were treated to a revealing video from the cast of Bridgerton in the form of a new video posted by Netflix, meaning filming for season three was officially underway. The video, which shows cast members in trailers and walking around on set, was shared by Netflix and season three star Nicola Coughlan.

Previously, Colin Bridgerton himself (aka actor Luke Newton) shared a snap of himself, Nicola Coughlan and showrunner Jess Brownall on Instagram on 19 June with the caption: "S3. You are not ready!"

Lady Whistledown (aka Nicola Coughlan's Penelope Featherington) announced the exciting news that season three of the Netflix hit will focus on Penelope and Colin's story, skipping book three in the series, which in Julia Quinn's novels focuses on Benedict Bridgerton. Nicola made the big revelation on Instagram on Monday (16 May), sharing that the next series will be all about #Polin.

Alongside a photo of herself and Luke, Nicola wrote: "Like Lady Whistledown I’ve been keeping quite a big secret for quite a long time… but I can finally tell you that @bridgertonnetflix Season Three is Colin and Penelope’s story."

The official Bridgerton Twitter account also shared a short clip of Nicola speaking at a Netflix event on 15 May, where she revealed the exciting news live on stage.

There's more casting change afoot at Bridgerton House, as Netflix has also just revealed a big casting switch-up for season three. Francesca Bridgerton, previously played by Ruby Stokes, will now be brought to life by Anatomy of a Scandal star Hannah Dodd, who portrayed a young Sienna Miller in the recently released Netflix thriller.

The switch was needed as Ruby Stokes will be heading up a different upcoming Netflix book adaptation, Lockwood & Co, based on Jonathan Stroud's novels, Deadline reports. The official Bridgerton Twitter account shared the news on 12 May, with a tweet reading: "The only thing the Ton loves more than a scandal is a celebration. Do joyously welcome the newest member to the Bridgerton family."

Francesca Bridgerton's character has been somewhat of an enigma so far, as she only made a handful of short appearances in series one and two, so we're intrigued to see her make her big entrée into the Ton. Francesca is expected to be the heroine of Bridgerton season six, based on the sixth book in Julia Quinn's series, When He Was Wicked.

For more on what we can expect from the Bridgerton series three plot, see below.

Julia Quinn's original novels each follow one of the eight Bridgerton siblings (Daphne, Anthony, Benedict, Colin, Eloise, Francesca, Gregory and Hyacinth) as they find love, with their stories following an alphabetic order after the first installment with Daphne as our heroine.

As such, we expected season three of Bridgerton to be based on the third book in the series, An Offer From A Gentleman, which has second eldest brother Benedict (Luke Thompson) as its lead. With a Cinderalla-esque plot, it tells Benedict's love story with new character Sophie Beckett, the daughter of an earl, who is treated like a servant by her horrible stepmother.

However, in a big switch-up, it has now been revealed that season three of the Netflix will skip book three for the moment to focus on book four, telling Penelope Featherington and Colin Bridgerton's potential journey from friendship to love story.

While fans of the books will know that the Netflix adaptation tends to differ from the original content, with new characters, plot lines and twists added in, we now have a rough idea of what to expect from Bridgerton season three.

The description from Quinn's fourth novel, Romancing Mr Bridgerton, reads: "Penelope Featherington has secretly adored her best friend's brother for... well, it feels like forever. After half a lifetime of watching Colin Bridgerton from afar, she thinks she knows everything about him, until she stumbles across his deepest secret and fears she doesn't know him at all.

"Colin Bridgerton is tired of being thought of as nothing but an empty-headed charmer, tired of the notorious gossip columnist Lady Whistledown, who can't seem to publish an edition without mentioning him. But when Colin returns to London from a trip abroad, he discovers nothing in his life is quite the same – especially Penelope Featherington. The girl who was always simply there is suddenly the girl haunting his dreams. When he discovers that Penelope has secrets of her own, this elusive bachelor must decide... Is she his biggest threat – or his promise of a happy ending?"

Shonda Rhimes had previously hinted that the Bridgerton seasons may not follow the original order of the books, so we're not entirely surprised about the change.

Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, the producer extraordinaire said: "There's eight Bridgerton siblings, so we're planning on following each one of the siblings' romantic stories. We're not necessarily going in order but we are going to be seeing each of the siblings and their stories."

The good news is that Rhimes and fellow executive producer Chris Van Dusen have already started the Bridgerton season three script, with Rhimes adding that they have "got a little bit creative so we're already hard at work writing season 3... That is already in progress and you'll see. Give it time."

We can't wait to see what unfolds, and whether Penelope's double life as Lady Whistledown will be revealed to the Ton...

As with series two, we can expect the whole Bridgerton clan to be back for the next instalment – from matriarch Lady Bridgerton (Ruth Gemmell) to last season's hero Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) and Benedict (Luke Thompson) – as well as the esteemed members of the ton we've all come to love, from the Featheringtons and Lady Danbury (Adjoa Andoh) to Queen Charlotte (Golda Rosheuvel).

One big change to the Bridgerton family line-up is coming, as it has been announced that second youngest daughter Francesca Bridgerton will now be played by Hannah Dodd, replacing Ruby Stokes as she leaves to head up a new Netflix show, Lockwood & Co.

And, of course, we can't wait to see what comes next for Lady Whistledown herself (aka Nicola Coughlan's Penelope Featherington).

There's no word yet from Shondaland or Netflix on when we can expect Bridgerton season three to be released, although Netflix has confirmed filming is underway.

With that schedule in mind, it's unlikely that we'll see Bridgerton back on our screens until 2023 at the earliest. Season two was released in March 2022, so we might be looking at a March 2023 air date if the next series follows suit. Sigh. We might just have to rewatch it all again to tide us over...

WATCH NOW Bridgerton seasons one and two are available to stream on Netflix now