Bridgerton's Nicola Coughlan responds following speculation about Luke Newton relationship

18 October 2024, 14:50 | Updated: 18 October 2024, 17:17

Bridgerton's Nicola Coughlan and Luke Newton have been subject to speculation about their relationship. Picture: LEONARDO MUNOZ/AFP via Getty Images, via Instagram

By Katie Louise Smith

"Isn’t it gorgeous that a man and woman can have that sort of relationship with one another?”

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Dearest gentlereader, Bridgerton's own Nicola Coughlan would like to set the record straight on all those rumours about her and co-star Luke Newton and whether or not they're actually dating in real life.

In case you haven't been keeping up with the on-going chat surrounding Luke and Nicola in the months since their season of Bridgerton was released, here's your update. Bridgerton season 3 focused on Penelope and Colin and was brought to life by Nicola and Luke's spectacular on-screen chemistry.

That spilled over into real life, with fans becoming obsessed with their interactions and close friendship throughout the press tour. It hasn't stopped either. Speculation has continued with some fans keeping tabs on their every move via their social media activity.

In a new interview with Time, Nicole politely responded to the on-going chat and seemingly confirmed the status of their relationship once and for all. (They're literally just friends, people!)

Are Nicola Coughlan and Luke Newton dating?

Nicola Coughlan adddresses Luke Newton dating rumours. Picture: Getty

“A lot of people really want me to marry Luke,” Nicola told the publication with a laugh.

Nicola and Luke are fully aware of the fandom hype surrounding their personal relationship. They played a little bit in to it too, turning the highly successful and extremely viral press tour into a masterclass on how two actors at the helm of a romantic TV series should promote a project to create maximum buzz. And it looks like they had so much fun doing it, too.

Continuing to discuss her dynamic with Luke, Nicola added: "We have this gorgeous friendship. We have such a love for one another and this experience that I’ll never have with someone else again."

"Isn’t it gorgeous that a man and woman can have that sort of relationship with one another?” she added, celebrating their platonic relationship.

Luke Newton opens up about filming “intimate scene” with Nicola Coughlan on Bridgerton

It's not the first time Nicola has addressed their relationship and it certainly won't be last as they're both returning for Bridgerton season 4. The Polin love isn't dying down any time soon.

Back in May 2024, Nicola told Extra that she and Luke thought the real life shipping was "really sweet, I think because we truly love each other.

"He is a really special person in my life. [...] It’s so nice having such a lovely friend that I can do all this with," she continued.

So, now that we've established that Nicola and Luke are not together IRL, are they actually dating anyone else? Nicola has not publicly shared any details about who she's dating. Luke appeared to confirm his relationship with Antonia Roumelioti in June 2024 after they were pictured holding hands at a Bridgerton season 3 afterparty.