Nicola Coughlan reveals Kim Kardashian DM’d her about Bridgerton

Nicola Coughlan stars as Penelope Featherington in Netflix series

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Nicola Coughlan is now “best friends” with Kim Kardashian after the reality star messaged her on Instagram.

In a new interview with Bustle, the Derry Girls actress recalled how she received an Instagram direct message (DM) from Kardashian last year. “I woke up one morning and had a DM from Kim Kardashian,” the 35-year-old actress said. “I was like: ‘What is going on?’ So weird! We talked about Bridgerton.”

Apart from being a billionaire business mogul, the 41-year-old Skims founder also happens to be a Bridgerton superfan. In March 2021, Kardashian revealed she’d finally binged the Netflix series after season one dropped on the platform three months prior.

Kardashian had posted updates of her Bridgerton deep dive to her Instagram story, even adding her own commentary. As season one romantic leads Daphne Bridgerton (​​Phoebe Dynevor) and Simon Bassett (Regé-Jean Page) kissed in the garden during episode four, Kardashian wrote to her story, “I’m not ok!!!!” and “It’s finally happening!”

Since their first DM exchange, Coughlan and Kardashian have kept in touch. Coughlan, who plays Penelope Featherington aka Lady Whistledown in Bridgerton, said she reached out to Kardashian last year to wish her luck ahead of her Saturday Night Live hosting debut last October.

“I messaged Kim to say: ‘You’re gonna do great!’ And she said: ‘Thanks, I’m really nervous,’” the actor recalled. “I told her:‘No, you’re gonna kill it.’”

Coughlan added: “She’s so nice. I’d heard that about her from lots of different people, and I can attest to it now.”

This was not the first time the pair have interacted on social media. During Kardashian’s Bridgerton binge, Coughlan tweeted at the KKW Beauty founder to inform her that the Kardashians were a major inspiration behind the fictional Featherington family.

“As the world’s number one @bridgerton Stan does @KimKardashian know that the Kardashians were a massive inspiration for the Featheringtons and we talked about them all the time during our fittings?” Coughlan tweeted in April 2021. “Because I feel like she should know this”.

Kardashian replied: “WHAT?!?! I am freaking out!!!!!! This tweet was sent to me on my @bridgerton group chat! Can I please come to a fitting?!?! It would make my whole life!!!!!! I love you Lady W!!!”

Coughlan stars as Clare Devlin in the coming-of-age series Derry Girls. Now, in the show’s third and final season, Coughlan has reflected on how fame can come with its own challenges.

“Fame is a very strange thing, and can be quite an isolating experience because it’s not something that most people can relate to,” she said. “I mean, there’s definitely more good than bad. But it’s certainly a challenge.”

One good outcome to Coughlan’s fame? “Well, now I’m, like, best friends with Kim Kardashian,” she said.