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Andy Cohen Reacts to New Beverly Hills Housewife Diana Jenkins
Get to know all about the RHOBH Season 12 newcomer's incredible life before the show.
We're only two episodes in to Season 12 of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, and already the drama is percolating. However, there's lots to look forward to as the season goes on, according to Andy Cohen.
The Daily Dish caught up with The Real Housewives executive producer on the red carpet of NBCUniversal's Upfront on May 16, and he teased what fans can expect from Season 12 of RHOBH. "It's absolutely excellent," Andy said. "There's a lot of drama, there's a lot of humor, there's a lot of heart, and there's real friendships and relationships."
Andy also called new Housewife Diana Jenkins "a fantastic addition to the show."
RHOBH fans officially got to meet Diana in the second episode of the season, which aired on May 18. But the excitement over her debut had already been building among the Beverly Hills Housewives prior to the episode airing. "Could not be more excited to Welcome Diana Jenkins," Lisa Rinna captioned a photo of herself and Diana on Instagram in advance of the episode, with Kyle Richards writing in another post, "Ladies [and] gentlemen [Diana] has entered the group chat. Can’t wait for you to meet her and hear her story."
Crystal Kung Minkoff also shared some more details about what Diana has in store for us this season. "Excited you’ll be introduced to my friend [Diana] on tonight’s episode. I call her a 'Firecracker' and you’ll most definitely will see why," Crystal wrote on Instagram on May 18. "[Lisa] and I have known her and [Diana's fiancé Asher Monroe] for many years and we can tell you, they are as real as it gets. So buckle up and see you tonight!!"
Diana even has a nickname for her and Crystal. On May 17, she captioned an Instagram photo of the pair as "Statler and Waldorf," referencing the iconic heckling Muppet characters.
Diana also advised fans to "get ready" for her inaugural RHOBH episode and teased that a "force of nature is about to enter your home." "I have been called many things but no one has ever called me boring lol," Diana wrote on Instagram on May 18. "Love me or hate me here I come."
"After all these years [I] have decided to tell you my story," she continued. "Watch listen and pay attention. Make your own mind up."
In the May 18 episode of RHOBH, Diana was introduced to the group at Harry Hamlin's 70th birthday party (clip above). "You've never met anybody quite like Diana Jenkins," Lisa said in an interview during the episode, with Erika Jayne adding in another confessional, "Believe me, I've heard a lot of stories about Diana Jenkins."
Crystal later shared in an interview during the episode that Diana is kind of a big deal. "Diana has a reputation. She has always been the It Girl in Europe. She hangs out with the glitterati of Hollywood. Her yacht, planes, I mean, a big, wealthy life," she said. "Diana once said to me, 'What is so cute about you, Crystal, is that you're so relatable, and I am not'... That's Diana."
And when the group got to talking about the Elton John gala drama at Harry's birthday party, Diana was not here for it, especially since she has a personal connection to the philanthropic event. "As it turns out, I am very involved with this charity. I have been made sponsor of this charity event for a very, very long time. Elton and his husband, David [Furnish], is a very good friend of mine," Diana said in an interview during the episode. "That charity is something that is very, very close to my heart. It's very personal."
Later on in the episode, we got to see Diana at home, where she revealed that she lives "a very big life," filled with tons of travel and homes all over the world. However, Diana's life didn't start out that way, as she shared that she "grew up very poor in Sarajevo in a Communist country."
"I was 19 years old when war broke out, and my dad was determined to get me out. I left my family behind. I was a refugee. And so, once I got to London, I didn't have any money, I didn't have a passport, nothing. I would do different jobs in restaurants, washing dishes, cleaning toilets. Doing anything to get anything," she said in an interview during the episode. "I would say there's a good 10 years of my life that were excruciating, and they were just survival."
Diana later met her now-ex-husband in London, who is one of the top investment bankers in the world. "I went from war, extreme poverty, to an extreme wealth," she said.
Diana later divorced her husband. "In my case, I wasn't happy, because truly, bottom line, I wanted to be on my own," she explained. "I want to have my own identity, I guess."
She has two children from her first marriage, son Innis, 22, who just graduated from college, and daughter Eneya, 19, who is in England training in horseback riding with the hope of one day competing in the Olympics. Diana described both of her kids as "hard workers."
Diana also has a 1-year-old daughter, Eliyanah, with her fiancé, Asher. "So after my divorce, I was single for about five minutes. I met Asher at a Victoria's Secret party," Diana said. "It was never meant to be anything else. And then [we] just kept having fun, kept having fun, and here we are."
Well, Diana has certainly piqued our interest, and we can't wait to get to know her even better as this season of RHOBH continues.
— Additional reporting by Stephanie Gomulka
Watch new episodes of RHOBH Wednesdays at 8/7c and streaming on Peacock. Plus, catch up with the Bravo app.