ITV's above-and-beyond plans to celebrate the ten year anniversary of The Real Housewives of Cheshire have been on Closer's radar since Tanya Bardsley first spilled the beans last summer and, frankly, we've been getting our Poirot on ever since to uncover all the secrets show bosses and the cast have in store.
And we've done pretty well, to be honest; we learned that 'old and new faces' would be joining the ladies on screen, we unearthed that series one legend Leanne Brown would be making a spectacular comeback and we discovered that the extra-long series would feature a hen party, dinner parties, a break-up, multiple girls' trips (including one to Thailand), a 50th birthday party for Rachel Lugo and yet another fancy-dress party.
We even stuck our noses in so hard once or twice that we got ourselves in trouble with the ladies themselves...
But finally, the wait is over; the first episode of series 18 streams on ITVBe and ITVX tonight (Monday 3 March) at 9pm and to whet our appetites just that little bit more, show bosses released an official trailer last night and upon watching it, we learned something new and HUGE.
Yep, according to the trailer, Leanna will be joined by returning housewives Deborah Davies and Nermina Pieters-Mekic this series. Oh, and Tanya will definitely be back as a guest, too. Although Ampika Pickston is not tagged in the trailer post, which leaves us a little concerned...
A little reminder on Deborah and Nermina for those who wouldn't choose The Real Housewives of Cheshire as their subject on Mastermind: world-renowned psychic medium Deborah famously took over from Dawn Ward when she left at the end of RHOCheshire series 12 (some big shoes to fill), joining the cast for the start of series 13 in spring 2021. She took part in series 13 and 14 of the hit ITVBe show before quitting. She then appeared as a guest in series 15 before stepping away from the series after that.
Nermina lasted just under a year on the hit ITVBe show before producers made her a 'guest housewife'. She has also modelled for Seema's brand, Forever Unique once upon a time.
Nermina also wildly chucked a drink in Ester Dee's face once – remember that?
Leanne's involvement in series 18 was made an apparent when Lauren Simon posted a snap of her filming with some of the regular cast on Instagram. The post was soon deleted, but not before Closer online spotted it 🔎. Now that her return has been made official, Leanne has spoken out about her comeback, telling her Instagram followers, 'The rumours are true – I recently made my return to the show! And what better time than for the 10-year anniversary! Can you believe it’s been a decade since this wild journey began? For me, it’s been a monumental transformation, my friendships, my marriage, my career, my lifestyle… everything has changed. It’s been a journey of deep self-discovery.
'When I first left the show, I had no intention of returning. Even though I made a brief appearance for the boxing, I was in a completely different place back then. There was so much going on in my life, and it was weighing on me mentally, spilling over into my personal life.
'At the end of the day, no one truly knows what’s going on behind closed doors or what’s in someone else’s head. "All that glitters is not made of gold". That’s something I’ve learned along the way. I’m a firm believer in no regrets, because if I hadn’t gone on this journey, I wouldn’t be where I am today. It’s been a learning process, and I hope my growth can inspire and empower others.
'It was so refreshing to return, especially without being in the center of all the drama! 😂 I’m grateful for my time on Real Housewives of Cheshire, even though things got tough in the end. It was the start of my path back to the REAL me!'
Welcome back, one and all 🥂.