Netflix’s Bridgerton has sparked praise for its portrayal of the ‘orgasm gap’ in its fourth season, as viewers hail a bedroom scene between Francesca Bridgerton (Hannah Dodd) and her husband John Stirling (Victor Alli) as the most realistic sex in the show yet.
In the scene, John asks Francesca if she has reached her ‘pinnacle’, leaving her confused. Initially believing it relates to pregnancy, Francesca later learns through conversations with her sister-in-law Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) and her mother (Ruth Gemmell) that sex can be pleasurable for women too.
Viewers have taken to Reddit to applaud the storyline. One user wrote: “Francesca’s story is representation of the millions of women for whom orgasm from penetrative sex alone is merely impossible.” Another called it “refreshing after seeing Daphne, Kate and Pen all immediately find sex easy and enjoyable.”
The storyline highlights the ‘orgasm gap’, a term describing how men experience orgasm more frequently than women. A 2022 YouGov study found that 61% of men orgasm every time they have sex, compared with just 30% of women. One in four women orgasm on most occasions, while a third do so only sometimes or never.
Samantha Marshall, head of brand at Smile Makers Collection, told The Mirror that pop culture has shaped expectations around sex. “For a long time, mainstream stories only showed one narrow version of sex,” she said. “Women were expected to be receptive, grateful, and magically orgasmic.” She praised Bridgerton for “normalising women talking openly about pleasure across generations, without shame.”
