Gossip Girl put the UES on the pop culture map for being fashion forward and the epitome of high society living. The TV series was based on a book series by Cecily von Ziegesa about a mysterious blogger called “Gossip Girl” who knew all the inside details of the lives of the upper-class teens on the Upper East Side. The series had 6 seasons, ending in 2012. Now, HBO has decided to reboot the series, which will debut this July.
If you haven’t seen Gossip Girl, here’s a brief synopsis …
The show opens with notorious UES “it girl” Serena van der Woodsen, played by Blake Lively, arriving at Grand Central Station. She had left the UES without letting her friends know where she was going or why. Her unexpected return was big news to her many fans, friends, and followers. Gossip Girl blasted out the news and everyone “who was anyone” started to prepare for it.
Blair Waldorf, played by Leighton Meester, was known as the Queen B of her UES prep school. She was also known as being Serena’s best friend. Blair was blindsided by Serena’s arrival and had mixed feelings about her return. Mixed feelings about their relationship was a constant theme between the two debutants. The two girls would often fight over boys, most notably Nate Archibald (Chace Crawford), Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick), and Daniel Humphrey (Penn Badgley).
The show’s main focus was on the complicated relationships between the teen cast members, and also on their families. Serena’s mother Lily van de Woodsen (Kelly Rutherford) was well known for her multiple relationships and marriages to a variety of personalities, including Rufus Humphrey (Daniel’s dad) and Bart Bass (Chuck’s dad). There is no shortage of drama, fashion, and beautiful locations. The show followed the cast from the UES to the Hamptons, Paris, and even downtown to NYU when the stars graduated and went to college.
THE UES GOSSIP GIRL LOCATION GUIDE!
Another highlight of the show is the multiple cameos of high profile New Yorkers including Lady Gaga, Tinsley Mortimer, Lisa Loeb, Tyra Banks, Alexa Chung, and Cyndi Lauper. Gossip Girl was so popular among millennials that it won 18 Teen Choice Awards among other accolades.
The new rendition of the HBO series promises more sex, secrets and scandals. There are 10 new episodes ready to go, featuring a new crop of privileged UES teens.
Perhaps the most exiting news is that the voice of Gossip Girl, Kristen Bell, will continue in the new series. Her famous catch phrase – “You know you love me, xoxo, Gossip Girl” – will be back, but whether the new show and cast will be as successful as the original remains a question.
There’s a new Gossip Girl TikTok account, and you can also follow the Twitter and Instagram pages for the latest updates.
