With less than a week to go until the first episode of series 17 of The Real Housewives of Cheshire the countdown to a fresh batch of glitz, glam and guilty pleasures is well and truly on and, we just have to say, whoever is looking after the RHOCheshire's official Instagram needs a pay rise. Or at least a celebratory lunch or one of those fancy ITV mugs Junaid Ahmed is always showing off because they have kept us on our toes this week with the RHOCheshire news.
The show's official Instagram account has been wildly active in the build up to the big day, teasing the identities of new Housewives, finally confirming Hanna Kinsella's future and keeping us up to date with the cast's holiday antics in Spain. We've been glued. GLUED we tell you.
And just when we thought, SURELY there is nothing left to tease or announce ahead of the series premiere, Natasha Hamilton goes and confirms her Housewife status.
As die-hard fans will already know, the Atomic Kitten star joined the show last series after being introduced to the girls by Sheena Lynch, but she was a one series wonder.
She told her followers, "I'm just popping up on here to let you know that I haven't returned to Housewives this season. Purely because I'm busy. I've got a baby – she's seven months old, and I'm launching my solo career. Even just juggling those two has been a massive task.
"I just wouldn't be able to dedicate what is needed to Housewives. It would've been unfair to just constantly say, 'I can't do it' and 'I can't do that'. So that's the only reason I haven't gone back. I wish the girls every success."
The official Housewives Instagram shared the post and wished Natasha all the best for the future, stressing that she will always be part of the RHOCheshire family.
In the same video, Natasha gave a shout-out to Ellie Egar – who will make her RHOCheshire debut this series – saying, "I hope the new girl is settling in well. I know how hard it is to be the new girl, but I think she's got some very strong women supporting her through it and I can't wait to see how it all goes."
So there you have it, Hanna and Natasha have officially stepped down as full-time Housewives; Hanna after five years, Natasha after one year.
We hope those two remain friends, too, because Hanna fangirling over Natasha every five minutes in series 16 was a personal highlight for us – mainly because she was ALL OF US.