By Lady Emma Thynn’s own rubric, Margo Stilley’s unexpected departure from Longleat on Ladies of London: The New Reign marked a failure in her hosting duties.
“As a host, you don’t ever want anyone to feel anything negative,” Lady Emma explained in an Episode 9 confessional. “You want everyone to have a glorious time and leave feeling better than they did when they came. If they’re not happy, then I feel like I failed.”
Following the fourth-wall-breaking drama involving Mark-Francis Vandelli, as well as a tense conversation with Lottie Kane and Missé Beqiri afterward, Margo had a panic attack while en route to a group activity in Somerset. At the suggestion of the production team, she returned to Longleat by herself and decided to pack up and leave Lady Emma’s historic estate, without informing any of her castmates.
RELATED: Why Mark-Francis Vandelli Broke the Fourth Wall on Ladies of London: “De-Mic Me, Please”
All along, Lady Emma had sided with her “best friend” Mark, describing Margo’s earlier behavior as “uncivilized” and telling her on multiple occasions that Mark’s shady comments about her fashion choices were simply not “that deep.” As the Marchioness of Bath saw it, Mark’s digs were just a part of “his sense of humor,” rather than personal attacks on Margo.
Even so, Margo was the lone Ladies of London cast member who did not show up for her dinner at the Bath Arms on Longleat Estate. “She just left. She just evaporated,” Emma said in a confessional. She also expressed concern for Margo to the rest of the group, who could not believe that Margo had apparently taken off back to London without saying a word to their gracious host.
“How are we gonna find out if she’s alright?” Emma wondered before further remarking, “Well, that’s a shame.”
Why Margo Stilley left Longleat early on Ladies of London: The New Reign
When the group split in two, Margo headed to explore the Cheddar caves with Lottie and Missé. During their car ride there, the two told Margo that they “did feel bad” for Mark, who said that she had allegedly called him a “freak.” They explained how Mark had been “triggered” by that word, due to past bullying related to his sexuality.
Though Margo pointed out that she’d only called Mark “weird” during their confrontation, she nonetheless added, “I do find him freaky. He is a freak.” Whereas Lottie and Missé saw Mark’s making fun of Margo’s style as “humor,” the duo said they felt her response had crossed the line into something “personal.” Lottie, for one, advised Margo not to “fight nastiness with nastiness.”
RELATED: Ladies of London’s Kimi Murdoch Issues Martha Sitwell a Warning About Margo Stilley
What’s more, the pair told Margo that it was actually the women in the group whom she considered to be her close friends who were speaking negatively about her. That led them to question why she had an issue with Mark but not the others. They also said that Margo appeared to be “vain,” based on how often she discussed designers and price tags.
“You’re saying really mean things to me,” Margo responded through tears. “It makes me feel more insecure. And then you’re like, ‘Why are you acting like this? Like, God, we’re just being peacekeepers.’ … You just told me extra-mean s–t that I don’t need to know. Stop telling me things that people are saying about [me] behind my back.”
As they pulled into the parking lot for the caves, Margo began sobbing amid what she described as a full-blown panic attack that prompted intervention from the production team. As mentioned, a crew member advised her to return to Longleat to decompress, and, off camera, she eventually departed altogether, unbeknownst to her castmates.
Margo Stilley unpacked her premature Longleat departure and new feud with Martha Sitwell
After learning that Margo had left, Martha Sitwell tried numerous times to call her friend, to no avail. They did eventually exchange some messages, according to a puzzled Martha, who described Margo as being unrecognizable to her at that point.
Otherwise, Margo did not speak to her or anyone else in the cast again until Myka Meier stopped by her home one week later. During their sit-down, Margo opened up about her panic attack, which she said was something that she had never experienced before.
“The panic attack lasted for days, which was really scary,” Margo elaborated in a confessional. “I couldn’t get good sleep, I couldn’t regulate. It’s really awful.”
The two also discussed how postpartum issues were likely a contributing factor, given that Margo had recently given birth. She also referred to her postpartum self as being admittedly “unrecognizable,” before unpacking why she was not speaking to Martha.
“The absolute worst part, the one thing that I thought about every time the panic attack would come on, was Martha,” Margo explained to Myka. “And then I started to think about it, and I’m like, Martha has defended me to everyone. Like, she really has defended me. But when she talks to me, she’s not, like, supportive to me.”
As you await their upcoming face-to-face meeting, get more details on the conflict between Margo and Mark-Francis on Ladies of London: The New Reign.
