Bravo has introduced another timeless show in their long lineup of wives-with-too-much-money series. This time featuring the British upper class, Ladies of London gives its viewers a look inside the lives of London’s richest and most bored members of high society. Filled with “posh” accents and tea, the pilot episode has done what it was intended to do and thoroughly reminded its viewers that people with money are ridiculous.
Nearly 30 of the pilot’s 43 minutes was taken up by introducing each “character” individually. If you missed it, here’s the run-down:
1. Stylish and snobbish, Caroline is a posh society girl grown into savvy businesswoman. A natural-born Brit, she’s clearly the most experienced and the one who will give the audience an “in” to the attitudes of the truly English.
2. The second character introduced is Caprice, a former sex worker who came to the U.K. many years ago and stayed to make her fortune in the tabloids. Now running a successful lingerie company, she’s as integrated into London society as an American can get, although she is always looking for a better place.
3. The closest thing to royalty on this show, Annabelle is old English money but doesn’t seem to care. Clearly intended to be the most laid back of the group, Annabelle rides horses and doesn’t care if her nails are done. She also has a teary-eyed backstory about a designer and very close friend who died a few years before which will no doubt be important later because they brought it up every few minutes.
4. They say she’s not a gold digger and you’ll have to take their word for it, but Noelle is definitely marrying for money. She’s only been in the U.K. for 10 years but she wants to integrate into society faster. Unfortunately her fiancé’s scandalous divorce is making that difficult.
5. Marissa has only been in the U.K. for a few years but has a baby and a husband and is applying for citizenship, a story which is sure to be played up throughout the season. I’m not sure how you make endless paperwork and interviews with homeland security agents exciting, but the editors will find a way.
6. The last in the list, Juliet is quickly established as “the most American.” With few “ins” into high society, she’s relying on Marissa and Noelle to help her establish herself but her attitude may get in the way.
If you’ve been paying attention, you may have noticed that this list contains more Americans than Brits, the final tally being 4:2 in favor of America. For a show ostensibly about British society, they seem to have struggled to find enough Londoners to fill out the cast. However, it is clear this series, rather than being about the “Ladies of London” as the title suggests, is more about the “ladies who want to be in London” and will follow the adventures and misadventures of Noelle, Marissa and Juliet as they work to establish themselves. Caroline, Caprise and Annabelle provide an insider’s look at the newcomers and let the audience know what they’re doing right and make a big deal about what they’re doing wrong.
Once everyone is introduced, the show cuts to the newcomers getting tea in a posh London tea shop. The girls discuss “Polo in the Park,” which has been brought up by everyone at least once so far this episode, and what they’re going to wear. Noelle explains that she wants to “add a hat to her look” and that she plans to wear one to the polo match. On the other side of town the ladies talk about the same subject and, unsurprisingly, have different opinions. All of the established Londoners agree that no one wears a hat to polo. After about two minutes the conversations end and everybody goes home to get ready, but not before Juliet has time to make everyone angry by bringing up Noelle’s never-ending divorce proceedings. Cut to commercial.
Just in case you missed the fact that everyone in this show is filthy rich, the establishing shots after the commercial break are of the cast getting ready for polo. Everyone has a private, in-home makeup artist and about a thousand combinations of sunglasses + wedge heel from which to choose. Now that we’ve been reminded that these people are rich, it’s off to the long-awaited Polo in the Park, all of which will occur in the last seven minutes of the episode. In a surprising twist, the established London ladies and the American newcomers meet, with Caprice acting as liaison between the two groups. The London ladies all note that the Americans are overdressed for the occasion, particularly Noelle and her hat. Marissa goes noticeably out of her way to get Caroline’s attention. Everyone eats lunch but drinks more champagne and nobody knows what polo actually is or how to play it. They all go to watch the game, the Londoners sitting in white lawn furniture looking casually above everything, while the Americans stand by the fence and watch the proceedings. As they figure out what’s going on in the game, the American girls get more into the action and begin to cheer and comment very loudly, which is unfashionable and the Londoners don’t fail to comment. Juliet is the worst offender, but also the one with the least to prove.
At the end of the day and despite all the snarky comments and “posh put-downs,” in the last 30 seconds of the episode, the London ladies all agree that they like the newcomers. I’m not really sure where all of this “liking” comes from as they had nothing but ire for the Americans leading up to this moment, but no doubt we will see more of this friendliness as the season progresses. If you’re a fan of the Desperate Housewives, woke up at 6am to watch the Royal Wedding, closely followed the birth of the Royal Baby, and/or really like it when Americans repeat a word an English person just said to point out that they have an accent, this is the show to watch! So hop on board for this season and let’s see where it takes us!
New episodes of Ladies of London premiere Mondays at 10ET/9CT on Bravo.
Images/video: Bravo
