Things have been quite quiet on The Real Housewives of Cheshire front since the cast of series 17 filmed that spicy reunion episode back in May. Many of the ladies have seemingly returned to their everyday lives since filming wrapped and have opted for a little more time out of the spotlight while the dust settles. Fair. Drama is exhausting.
Writing about drama is exhausting, too.
Last time we saw the ladies on-screen, a cast divide had split the group right down the middle. And from the looks of a recent off-screen reunion between Rachel Lugo, Nicole Sealey, Lauren Simon, Seema Malhotra, and former Housewife Hanna Kinsella – not to mention a few choice comments made on social media following the meet – that divide is ever present.
The cast divide is between the OG ladies aforementioned and newer (ish) cast members, Lystra Adams, Sheena Lynch, Paige Chohan and newest Housewife Eleanor Egar, and last week, these four ladies were notably absent at an an off-screen OG reunion in Wilmslow; a reunion plastered all over the OG ladies' socials.
Lauren, Nicole, Seema, Rachel and Hanna all met at Browns Wilmslow over the weekend, with Hanna sharing several snaps of the ladies on her grid with the caption, "Reunited with my @officialroch girlies! Missed them so much ❤️ @lauren_simon_835 @nicolesealey74 @rachellugo1 ❤️ Thank you so much @brownswilmslow for having us."
While it's lovely to see these ladies smiling and laughing together away from ITVBe cameras, the missing newbies did not go unnoticed by fans in the comments – and Hanna's responses to them did not go unnoticed by us...
While most wished the girls well and gushed over seeing them all together again after a couple of months, others were quick to throw shade (albeit indirectly) at the missing half of the cast and let's just say guest Housewife Hanna didn't exactly ignore it.
One fan of the show commented, "Bet there was no drama today. Looking great ladies xx," to which Hanna replied, "nope 😂", while another added, "This the A TEAM at last no drama queens in sight 👏👏," to which the former Housewife commented, "❤️🙌."
Okay, so it's not the shadiest of shade we've ever witnessed, but it certainly raised an eyebrow.
Hanna stepped down to guest Housewife status ahead of series 17, afterclashing with new Housewife Paige Chohan while filming scenes for series 16. If you're not up to date on that drama – why are you not binging that season on ITVX right now?
A word of advice: turn down the volume if you're watching the series 16 reunion on your lunchbreak in the office. You're welcome.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the cast divide, it seems the 'newbies' have been spending a fair bit of time socialising off-camera together, too.
Just a couple of weeks back, Lystra shared a snap of her, Sheena, Eleanor and guest Housewife Ampika Pickston wining and dining at the boujie Victors Alderley Edge.
Guest Housewife Tanya Bardsley was not in attendance, but she did comment on the snap, writing, "Faves 😍❤️❤️❤️."
No prizes for guessing which side of this divide our Tanya is on then.
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Ben Pulsford is a digital writer for Bauer Media, writing for both Closer online and heatworld. When he's not getting paid to gossip about TOWIE, Love Island and The Real Housewives of Cheshire, he's storming the London LGBTQ+ scene as drag queen, Beary Poppins. Both Ben and Beary are awaiting an invite to join The Real Housewives of Cheshire for series 18. The budget's not there, but the drama is 💅