A triumphant return. Former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Taylor Armstrong is making Bravo history as the first Housewife to move franchises.
The Oklahoma native was one of the founding members of RHOBH when it premiered in 2010. After remaining on the show for three seasons and appearing as a guest on numerous occasions over the years, Armstrong, now a resident of Orange County, California, has joined The Real Housewives of Orange County as a cast member for its upcoming 17th season.
The road back to Bravo took a few years for the TV personality after her 2013 departure. In 2011, after she filed for divorce from her then-husband, Russell Armstrong, ahead of season 2 of the show, the venture capitalist died by suicide that August. Taylor went on to film season 3 but left thereafter citing Russell’s death as the main reason for her exit.
Since then, Taylor became an advocate for domestic abuse survivors, writing a a memoir, Hiding From Reality: My Story of Love, Loss and Finding the Courage Within, in 2012. In addition, she joined The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip spinoff series in 2021.
The reality star also went on to marry attorney John Bluher in April 2014 in a beachside ceremony in Pacific Palisades, California. They now live in Orange County with Taylor’s daughter, Kennedy, whom she welcomed with Russell in 2006.
Speaking with Us Weekly exclusively in June, the author noted how “betrayed” she felt in her last relationship before Bluher, which negatively affected her hopes for her dating life. “When your life plays out on television, I don’t know how you meet someone that you’ve never been with before and just assume that they’re not going to have so many preconceived thoughts about who you are,” she said.
Before joining the cast of The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip Ex-Wives Club in 2021, she befriended RHOC alums Vicki Gunvalson and Tamra Judge. Since the CUT Fitness founder announced her return to the California franchise in July 2022, the two may become even closer as costars.
“My life is so different now after overcoming the tragedies that I went through and I wanted to be able to share that with the audience because I feel like my story just sort of dropped off the face of the earth when I left,” Taylor shared with Entertainment Tonight in June 2022 ahead of the RHUGT premiere. “I wanted people to see that I’m in a different place now and that I’m happy and healthy and having fun.”
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