The glamorous ladies of Real Housewives of Melbourne returned with all of their usual fanfare in 2021, following a three-year hiatus from our screens.
WATCH: The Real Housewives of Melbourne Season 5 taglines
Original cast members Janet Roach, Gamble Breaux and Jackie Gillies were joined in the fifth season by newcomers Cherry Dipietrantonio, Simone Elliot, Kyla Kirkpatrick and Anjali Rao. But, it was clear from the beginning that there was a disconnect between the new and old housewives and fans found themselves missing the OG stars. And fans weren’t the only ones.
“I have to be honest and tell you that, at first, it wasn’t easy getting to know the four new ladies. I can confirm that it’s on like Donkey Kong from the off!” Jackie told WHO ahead of the season premiere. And she wasn’t kidding.
From minor slights (like champagne dame Kyla bringing her own glasses into someone else’s home for lunch), to major feuds (like Janet allegedly rifling through the drawers of Anjali’s home to prove she didn’t live there), the drama was very strong from the get-go.
Jackie also said the new cast members couldn’t let things go, which made it harder.
“One thing I kind of miss is like Gina Liano and I could have a massive barney, that’s our European passion coming out, then it was like, bang, it’s done,” she revealed.
“Straight after filming we’d be like, ‘Girl! What was that all about?’ Some of the new ladies though, there’d be an argument and then they wouldn’t talk to you for days!”
The rift was clear throughout the season, with many fans outraged that the original housewives like Gina, Chyka Keebaugh, and Lydia Schiavello weren’t involved.
Shortly after the finale aired, Janet threw gasoline onto the fire as she tweeted that three of the season five newcomers would not be returning for the sixth season.
“The season is over,” she wrote on Twitter. “Those 3 won’t be back. They rated poorly. Why do you think [former Housewives] Susie, Sally and Venus didn’t come back? They wanted to, unfortunately they rated poorly.”
Considering there are four newbies, it would have been somewhat safe to assume she was referring to Cherry, Kyla and Anjali. Especially since Simone responded to the tweet to say “the matriarch has spoken.”
One follower commented to say “I miss the old gang – hopefully next year some favourites will come back,” to which Janet replied: “That’s what I think will happen.”
Now, Jackie has further fanned the flames after sharing a photo with some of the original cast members on April 2.
“Who’s missing the #rhomelbourne? Love my girls!” Jackie wrote on Instagram, sharing a photo of herself alongside Janet, Gina, Chyka and Gamble. The women were also joined by friends Lisa Potasz, Virginia Tzaf and TV producer Natalie Brosnan.
Could this be the new cast line-up? Fans are certainly hoping so.
“Keeping my fingers crossed for a new season with you ladies!” one fan commented.
“All you need is Lydia and you’ve got the season 6 cast!” wrote another.
It wouldn’t be too surprising if this group did return, especially since Gina and Lydia had originally signed on for the fifth season when it was announced pre-COVID. Due to the pandemic, filming was delayed and the women ended up pulling out of the season.
In an interview with The Herald Sun, Gamble said she would “love” to do another season with the original stars. Gamble also said that she wants to see season five newcomer Simone return, along with Simone’s sister. But when asked about Anjali, she responded: “Who?”
As for the others? Gina previously revealed she would return if there was a great need for her glittering presence on our screens.
“If the show needed saving, I would feel like, ‘Oh god, I’ve gotta go in and fix this.’ I’m a fixer,” Gina said on the Shine It Up podcast. Well, Gina. Get to fixing.
You can watch Seasons 1-5 of Real Housewives of Melbourne on BINGE. Stream it now on BINGE, live and on-demand with a 14-day free trial.
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