Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan on season 3 of hit Netflix show and Kiwi charity campaign

Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan is supporting Women's Refuge NZ through a new campaign with Uber Eats. Photo / Uber

Irish actor Nicola Coughlan’s enthusiastic energy lights up the room and contrasts with the wallflower she is known for playing. Penelope Featherington may be the focal point of the new season of Bridgerton, but Coughlan is candid about the importance of spotlighting issues she cares about. She speaks with the Herald about launching a new campaign with Uber Eats NZ and Women’s Refuge.

Nicola Coughlan’s joyful energy is just as present in real life as it is on screen.

Like any star who has to be “on” in front of the camera most days, you could forgive her for being tired or jet lagged. Not so with Coughlan - when we speak in Sydney, she has simply decided being tired isn’t on her agenda.

The night before our interview, she hopped off the plane and went to a drag show at Sydney’s The Imperial bar.

Nicola Coughlan's Bridgerton character Penelope Featherington is at the centre of the upcoming third season of the hit Netflix show. Photo / Uber

Coughlan’s best tip, she declares with the energy of a best friend leaning over to tell you a piece of gossip, is immediately putting herself in the mind of the time zone she is going to.

“I don’t have time to be jet-lagged,” she laughs, wearing a bright burnt orange dress.

The Irish actor squeezed in an interview with the NZ Herald while in the middle of a whirlwind promotional tour for Bridgerton, with her character Penelope Featherington set to take centre stage in the show’s third season.

What is refreshing about Coughlan, 37, is that her career was not an overnight success but the result of years of perseverance. Her role as Clare Devlin in 2018′s Northern Ireland Catholic school comedy Derry Girls was the turning point, showcasing Coughlan’s comedic timing and captivating on-screen charisma.

Then came a period drama on Netflix you might have heard of.

All eyes are on Coughlan as the hype train builds for the new season of Bridgerton (part one of season three is available on Netflix from May 16) - but she is simultaneously turning the attention back on to the causes she cares about.

Coughlan is the face of a new campaign with Uber Eats NZ in collaboration with Women’s Refuge NZ to help with period poverty. From this week until the end of August, Uber will donate one period product for every pad, tampon or liner sold through the app.

Coughlan wanted the brand partnership, which also includes a hilarious video where she orders a ‘period romance’ on the app, to have a lasting positive impact for people in need.

The partnership with Women’s Refuge extends to Uber rides and meals for women and children escaping domestic violence and accessing essential services.

It is not hard to find further evidence of Coughlan putting her values at the forefront of her image.

On Instagram, she recently shared fundraisers for aid efforts in Gaza and raised tens of thousands of pounds for medical relief. I ask her if there is ever any hesitation to speak out about the issues she cares about, if it is as effortless as it appears.

“It can be difficult to speak out about causes, because you’re going to annoy somebody. I have to try and weigh it and go well, what’s the most important thing?”

Over the years she has distanced herself from the immediate gratification of sharing her opinion online and instead turns to practical ways to help.

“I think if you come from a good place and your main goals are to support innocent and disadvantaged people, then I think your moral compass can’t lead you too far wrong.”

Nicola Coughlan fronts a new Uber Eats campaign supporting Women's Refuge to help Kiwi women in need access period products. Photo / Uber

In a recent article for Harper’s Bazaar, Coughlan penned a moving piece about evolving from a wallflower to the leading lady of one of the world’s biggest shows. She wrote about the boundaries she places on her public and private selves.

When I ask her about how she arrived at these boundaries, she says if fame had happened earlier she would have found striking this balance “very difficult”. She keeps clear separations between work and her home life - she doesn’t share her day to day online and returns home to see her family in Ireland as often as her schedule allows.

At the same time, she wants to give back to the “incredible” fans of Bridgerton.

“It’s like putting on your own mask on the plane first before you put one on someone else.That’s the kind of thing that keeps me sane, I think.”

The new season of Bridgerton finds Penelope Featherington grappling with the events at the end of the last season. She has fallen out with her best friend Eloise and is heartbroken after overhearing Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) say he would not court her.

All of this while dealing with her double life as Lady Whistledown.

Penelope and Colin’s glow ups for this season drew massive attention when the trailer dropped.

As Coughlan puts it, Pen struggles with her identity and how she is perceived. Others see her as the wallflower, while she is secretly the woman who wants it all: The role as society’s gossip, strong female friendships, and the man she loves.

“This is what I love about this season - it’s written so cleverly because they both have this aesthetic glow up at the beginning of the season and then you realise very quickly it’s all superficial and they’ve not done any inner work in order to actually change.”

One of the first images of Bridgerton's new season shows Penelope (Nicola Coughlan), who is expected to finally become romantically involved with Colin Bridgerton. Photo / Netflix

With her boundaries in mind, I want to know how Coughlan herself wants to be perceived.

She is quick to clarify as a public figure, people will never know 100 per cent of the real her, and she has learned to let that go. Instead, she cares more about how those who actually know her in real life see her.

“I hope they think I’m a kind person. I hope I treat everyone with the same level of respect. That’s something that’s very important to me. And I’ve worked a lot of retail jobs,” she laughs.

“So I know what it’s like when people don’t treat you with respect.”

A continuous thread throughout Coughlan’s projects is the strength of friendship, particularly the friendship that exists between women - whether it be Clare, Orla, Erin and Michelle in Derry Girls, being one of the Barbies in Greta Gerwig’s universe, or the chaos of Maggie and Eddie’s friendship in Big Mood.

“It just brings me so much joy and I love seeing lots of different types of women on screen, especially complicated and messy women.”

What excites Coughlan about what is next are the things she hasn’t done before. Deeper, darker roles as an example - and she continues to put out the plea to star in anything the cult favourite entertainment company A24 produces.

“I love that fear of going ‘I don’t know if I can actually do this’.”

Speaking of the unknown, Coughlan has never been to New Zealand but does not need much convincing for a trip to Aotearoa. She recently worked with Baby Done director Curtis Vowell for the Dark Ages British comedy Seize Them.

“He is an angel, he’s so, so lovely,” she says.

“I remember watching Lord of the Rings as a teenager and I was like, ‘that is the most beautiful place in the world’. So I’m honestly dying to go. If you guys will have me there for any reason, I will be there!”

Part 1 of Bridgerton season 3 will be available to watch on Netflix from May 16.