This. This is why we work at Closer online; so we can speak to Real Housewives of Cheshire icon of icons/blonde bombshell of bombshells Ester Dee about secret off-screen feuds nobody knew about - especially if said feuds are with OG Housewife Tanya Bardsley 😱.
RHOCheshire fans across the nation erupted into ecstasy this week as ITV confirmed what Rachel Lugo has been teasing for months on Instagram – a Real Housewives of Cheshire Christmas special is on the way. Rachel may have teased a Christmas special on the horizon, but something she definitely didn't mention was that the special would take place on a cruise ship travelling around Mexico and that this momentous event would be called Christmas Cruising.
When news of the special was made public, fans also learned that producers were bringing back two iconic Housewives for the event – to ensure this cruise wasn't all plain sailing, no doubt. And these aren't just any Housewives, these are the Avengers of Cheshire Housewives: Tanya Bardsley and Ester Dee.
Naturally, we HAD to speak to these ladies immediately and within 48 hours we were speaking on the phone with Ester, who joined the show back in 2016. She then decided to leave the ITVBe series four years later in 2020 after realising she hasn't been happy for a while.
So what's changed? Ester exclusively told Closer Online, "I always dreamt we should go to Mexico with the show. All the time I wanted to go to America, so when the production called me and said, ‘Well, we’re thinking of cruising and going to Mexico’, the honest answer was, ‘Oh my God, I need to do it!’ I just got butterflies because I sort of said I’m not coming back. But it’s a Christmas special and it’s Christmas, so why not?"
Speaking of how things have improved for the better since her time as a regular fixture on the show, Ester said, "I think the cast has changed, obviously, that helps; all the characters now feel nice and equalised, so it’s got a completely different vibe. It’s a happier group of girls. I think I came into a group which had heavy issues [originally]. These girls now feel nice and easy. I do feel the balance, definitely, is better at the minute. A big difference to when I was filming.”
When we say we spoke to this tea-spilling queen about everything, we do mean we spoke to the tea-spilling queen about everything: her hot boyf (we had to), Rachel Lugo, Nicole Sealey, Dawn Ward... You name it.
One name which of course got brought up was fellow returning Housewife Tanya. According to Ester, she had no idea that Tanya had been invited on the cruise before seeing her on the boat, which is super awkward because prior to the trip, the two had secretly "fallen out".
Seriously, ITVBe, you need to start attaching body cams to these women – even the ones that leave – because the drama game never ends with this lot.
Ester revealed, "Do you know what? I didn’t know she was going to be filming there by the bar [on the cruise ship]. And when I saw her, I was like, 'Who’s that?' Then I was like, ‘Oh! It’s Tanya!’.
She added, "Actually, before filming this time we had fallen out a little bit, but we made up through the trip, so that was nice for me, as well. I spent a little time with her and we’ve already arranged lunch before Christmas.”
Isn't this what Christmas is all about? Falling out and then making up? Both involving bubbles, of course.
And it seems Ester wasn't kidding when she said her and Tanya have managed to put the past behind them and just had fun together, because it seems the pair are entertaining the idea of returning to the show as full-time cast members. Imagine.
When we asked Ester if she would ever return to the show for good, she told us, "Yeah, I think the door is definitely open, because when I came back I felt really good; I was missing everybody.
"So, I’m not sure. Maybe. Maybe Tanya. I think Tanya enjoyed it!”
No need to get us anything for Christmas, friends and family. We've got everything we need right here.
The Real Housewives of Cheshire: Christmas Cruising, Mondays from 5 December at 9pm on ITVBe and the ITV Hub.