‘Real Housewives of D.C.’: Charles Ommanney Blamed the Show For His Divorce: ‘I Have Very Few Regrets … But This Is the One’
The Real Housewives franchise is unstoppable. The first edition appeared more than 15 years ago. The Real Housewives of the OC aired in 2006, and since then fans have been introduced to housewives from all over the country, including Beverly Hills, Atlanta, New York City, and the Potomac. Some of the versions have been smash hits, while others fizzled.
‘Real Housewives of DC’ was not a hit like the other ‘Real Housewives’ shows
The DC branch of the Real Housewives franchise was canceled after only one season. In fact, it was the shortest running Real Housewives show ever. The show had a decent amount of viewers and a decent amount of drama. Some speculate that even though there were some dramatic moments, the show wasn’t nearly as dramatic as producers wanted.
Andy Cohen himself said that the DC crowd was “serious” compared to the other Real Housewives franchises. Despite how uptight politicians and the politically inclined might be, there was one crazy moment on the show. Cast member Michaele Salahi and her husband Tareq crashed a state dinner. They pretended to have invitations and somehow made it past many security checkpoints.
While it made for good reality TV, it is disturbing to think how easily these two could have accessed the president. Although Cohen never said exactly why he pulled the plug on Real Housewives of DC, the show did plenty of damage in its short time on the air, especially for Catherine Ommanney.
Catherine Ommanney was the stars of the short-lived reality series
All stories need a villain. Reality TV is no exception. Real Housewives is famous for its villains, and Catherine Ommanney was the DC version. On the show, the British native was finishing a book about her first marriage while still very much in the honeymoon phase with Charles Ommanney, her hubby at the time.
She was fine with being the bad guy of the show, so much so that she was excited for a possible season two. According to Catherine Ommanney, at the time she was “quite confident” that a second season would be forthcoming, despite the signals from Bravo and Cohen that there would be no continuation of the show.
Not only did Catherine Ommanney never get her second season, but within a year of wrapping the show, she wouldn’t even be living in DC, according to NY Daily News. Filming for The Real Housewives of DC basically destroyed Catherine Ommanney’s marriage and may have ruined Charles Ommanney’s career.
Charles Ommanney regrets going on the reality show
Catherine and Charles Ommanney’s whirlwind marriage lasted less than two years. She uprooted her life in London to move in with Charles Ommanney in DC, and immediately signed on to be part of the reality show. Charles Ommanney agreed to be on the show as well, although friends weren’t sure why.
Charles Ommanney worked as a photojournalist for Newsweek. He covered the White House. His job required a lot of networking and trust. After agreeing to be on a reality show, many of Charles Ommanney’s former colleagues no longer wanted to speak with him, for fear of being filmed discussing sensitive information.
But the show hurt more than Charles Ommanney’s career. Although Charles Ommanney is tight-lipped about the details, being on the show seems to have ruined his marriage as well. All in all, Charles Ommanney calls signing up for the show a mistake, according to Buzzfeed. He told the New York Times that “I have very few regrets in my life, but this is the one.”
For her part, Catherine Ommanney also seems to regret her actions on the show, even though she was ready for a second season. She told the New York Times “The fact that I am set up to be the villain, I could probably have lived with if I was still in my life with my husband and family.”
