This week’s episode of “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” airs days after cast member Whitney Rose announced that her 14-year-old daughter, Bobbie Rose, was hospitalized in an intensive care unit over the weekend after “severe asthma exacerbation.”
Whitney posted the news on her Instagram story late Sunday, stating, “I normally would never come on here to share something so vulnerable but we need prayers and good vibes right now.”
On Tuesday, Whitney shared an update that Bobbie “has finally seen a bit of improvement,” though “she still has a long ways to go.” Whitney thanked everyone “for all of your prayers, they are felt and working.”
Whitney was originally scheduled to appear Wednesday on Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live,” but at 6:50 p.m., a little more than an hour before the most recent ‘RHOSLC’ episode aired, she posted an exterior photo of Primary Children’s Hospital new campus in Lehi to her Instagram story, stating “there is no place I’d rather be than here with Bobbie.” (People magazine reported that Whitney canceled her appearance because of Bobbie’s hospitalization.)
The latest episode, filmed in spring, is largely centered around Whitney as she plays tour guide on the cast members’ trip to Milwaukee.
It involved an itinerary that Wisconsin tourism officials surely loved: The Miller Brewing Co.’s headquarters for a beer-and-cheese tasting in their “beer caves”; a tour of the Harley-Davidson Museum, followed by dinner; and a drag show at a gay bar owned by Whitney’s friend, drag icon Trixie Mattel.
“It’s my goal to post some photos from our Milwaukee trip to my feed later once we are settled in for the night,” Whitney posted Wednesday evening.
Milwaukee trip continues
(Joshua Applegate | Bravo) Heather Gay, left, and Angie Katsanevas enjoy beer and cheese at the Miller Brewing Co. brewery in Milwaukee, in a scene from "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City."
Even as the castmates are waking up for their second day of planned activities, there’s rising tension.
It starts when Meredith talks to Lisa about a previous conversation Meredith had with Whitney and Angie — in which Meredith was advised to watch her back where Lisa is concerned.
Lisa, citing the work she and Meredith have been doing to restore their battered friendship, is angry enough to declare that she’s not going to join the group at the Miller brewery.
Instead, Lisa talks Britani and other newcomer Meili Workman into an alternative outing, to go curling. (Pro tip to Lisa: You could do that at home; the Utah Olympic Speedskating Oval in Kearns has a nice curling sheet.)
The most interesting thing that happens at curling: Britani gets a text from her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Jared Osmond. Jared is part of the singing Osmond dynasty, a nephew to Donny & Marie. Lisa dismisses the family connection: “He’s a D-list Osmond!”
In confessional, Lisa critiques Britani as “a quintessential [Latter-day Saint] girl, born and bred to please a man. That’s the norm for this culture to be valuable. That’s a very outdated way of thinking.”
At the brewery, Whitney and Heather Gay re-enact the opening credits of “Laverne & Shirley” (the beloved ‘70s sitcom about two roommates who work in a Milwaukee brewery), before the six cast members go into the Miller “beer caves” — where beer was stored in the days before refrigeration — for drinks and Wisconsin cheese.
Mary, we’re told, has never had beer before. Her tastes (as a flashback reminds us) run toward Dom Pérignon. But when Mary learns that Miller High Life is billed as “the champagne of beers,” she tries some — and likes it.
“I had no clue there is an upscale beer,” Mary declares. “It’s regal.”
(Miller High Life, which is owned by Molson Coors, isn’t exactly upscale; according to Yahoo Finance, it was the 12th-highest selling beer in the United States in 2022, with sales of $405 million.)
Dining among the Harleys
(Joshua Applegate | Bravo) Angie Katsanevas, center, confronts Lisa Barlow, while Whitney Rose, left, and Meili Workman look on, at the Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, in a scene from "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City."
Before leaving the brewery, Heather tells Whitney about a conversation she had the day before with Meredith — who had heard online rumors about the dubious origins of the jewelry Whitney is selling in her Prism line. (Last week, Heather urged Meredith to talk to Whitney directly, to help the less-experienced businesswoman get beyond the online chatter. Meredith expressed doubts about whether Whitney would be receptive to her business advice.)
As Heather told Whitney about this exchange, she made a request: Don’t pick a fight on the van back to the hotel. Whitney obliges.
But an hour later, on the van trip from the hotel to the Harley-Davidson Museum, Whitney raises the issue with Meredith, complaining that she talked about Whitney’s business with other cast members. (Whitney also mentions in a confessional that she already knew about the online rumors, which she said are false.)
The conversation between Whitney and Meredith gets heated, but stops the second the van arrives at the Harley-Davidson Museum — a shrine for the Harley-loving Whitney.
Bronwyn comments in confessional about the sudden shift. “It was a full-on assault in the Sprinter van,” Bronwyn said. “It took the Harley-Davidson Museum to bring out the classy side.”
Whitney and Meredith pick up the discussion at the dinner, and Lisa jumps in to defend Meredith.
Some of Lisa’s anger at Whitney goes back to the “Besos” party in the season’s first episode, and some of that emotion is aimed at Angie — because Angie told Whitney in advance how mad Lisa was at her. Angie, who claims in confessional that her friendship with Lisa goes back 15 years, tells Lisa that “you haven’t been a good friend to me.”
Lisa then accuses Angie of invoking her daughter, Elektra, when she wants to duck out of hard conversations with Lisa. The entire table goes silent at this comment, which Angie in confessional calls “an all-new low for her.”
Comparing relationships
(Joshua Applegate | Bravo) Heather Gay, Meredith Marks and Lisa Barlow, from left, at the Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, in a scene from "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City."
Britani breaks the silence, by announcing that she and Jared have finally broken up. When asked, Britani acknowledges that she hasn’t told Jared this yet. (A preview of next week’s episode shows Jared on camera for the first time, angry that Britani broke up by text.)
Britani, feeling picked on, decides to lob a vague accusation at Bronwyn: “I think you should worry about your own marriage, Bronwyn.”
The moment soon devolves into a conversation about Bronwyn’s marriage to Todd Bradley, who’s both quite rich (he used to be CEO of Palm, makers of the Palm Pilot) and 26 years older than his wife. Bronwyn defends her marriage, proclaiming that she’s both physically and emotionally attracted to Todd — and that they married without a prenuptial agreement.
“There is something genuine between Todd and I, and he sees it,” Bronwyn says.
‘Costume’ at the drag show
(Joshua Applegate | Bravo) Bronwyn Newport, left, and Meredith Marks at the This Is It! bar in Milwaukee, in a scene from "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City."
Whitney cuts off all arguments at this point, asking everyone, “Are you all ready to see a drag show?”
The castmates change clothes at the museum — and Bronwyn has the most fascinating choice: A dress from Moschino’s 2022 collection that looks like a giant hot dog.
“This is couture,” Bronwyn says in confessional. “I was in Milan when this walked down the runway, [and I said,] ‘This will be mine.’”
Mary, who bonded with Bronwyn at the “Besos” party over fashion (and giving side-eye to Britani for calling Bronwyn’s heart-shaped Yves Saint Laurent jacket “a costume”), isn’t so sure about the hot dog dress.
”The heart coat? That’s fashion,” Mary says in confessional. “The hot dog outfit? That’s costume.”
In Trixie Mattel’s bar, Whitney ends the night by inviting all of the Housewives onstage for a dance-off. Just hours after they seemed mad at each other, they’re again hanging out and having fun.
Next week’s episode is scheduled to air on Bravo on Wednesday, Oct. 16, at 9 p.m. Eastern time — and airs at 7 p.m. Mountain time on DirecTV and Dish, as well as at 10 p.m. Mountain time on Xfinity. (The show streams the next day on Peacock.)
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