Season 3 moves the entire operation to Rosecroft Park in Buckinghamshire, England, where Lisa Vanderpump has assembled her largest staff yet for a $50,000 bonus and what she calls “the most magnificent summer yet.”
Meet the Staff at Rosecroft Park
The returning staff arrive with their agendas already locked in. Hagen sets the tone immediately: “Feels good to be back on my throne. I had to come back. It’s really rough out there. I was serving a little bot, dog walking, catering. I actually got a job handing out condoms in the streets, you know, keeping people safe. They call me an American hero. But this summer, I’ll be the hero of England.”
Gabriella is coming for the bonus again — she said so plainly. Sher says she didn’t get enough time showing Lisa what she has last season, and she’s going for the tip too.
The history between Alyssa and Sam gets surfaced early. Sam confirms they haven’t talked in a while. Alyssa’s version of events: “I haven’t seen Sam since Las Vegas, after he asked me for a piece of gum to make out with a girl in front of me at the club. So that was a little fun.”
An even more added layer to the story? Sam admits, “Hannah and I have been talking basically every day since last season. We have seen a lot of each other. Through pictures. I’ve gotten nudes from Hannah. Yeah. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t maybe excited to see those in person.”
Hannah has her own plan for the summer. When a producer asks whether Sam will be the first person she kisses, she delivers the line of the premiere: “Maybe we’ll kiss, and then I’ll, like, deny him. After everything I’ve gone through, I just wanna be single, live my dirty 30 horny Hannah life.”
The New Faces
New hire Nick — 25, born in Dundee, raised across Poland and Hungary, based in Edinburgh — arrives with confidence he describes as coming “in heavy doses.” He is a bartender, and Alyssa clocks him immediately. “I can maybe see something happening between Nick and I.”
New server Keviah arrives from Dallas with five years of serving experience and a story heavier than ambition. She opened up about an ATV accident in spring 2023. “The ATV went in the air, sideswiped my face. I don’t remember anything from the month of May of 2023 at all. And then now, I also forget things very easily. But over the past couple years, I’ve been able to really just come to terms with everything. And being here, I’m really excited to just form new memories and have a new start.”
Keviah also immediately latched onto Gabriella as a role model — though she called her Gabby, which Gabriella shut down at once. “Oh my God. I love you, but like, I’m firm on ‘Gabriella.’” The two patched it up quickly, with Gabriella telling her they are going to “move mountains.”
Lisa Brings Marciano Back — and Explains Why
Marciano’s return is the most loaded variable heading into the season. His name became entangled in The “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” Season 3 after allegations of misconduct involving Demi Engemann and Jessi Draper surfaced. He has denied the allegations and is currently suing Demi for defamation.
Lisa addressed it directly. “I take allegations very seriously. And trust me, I would never have brought him back if there was any indication of Marciano’s misconduct. I’m going to give him an opportunity to redeem himself.” Marciano says he has a lot of stress back home because of the Mormon Wives situation, and that he wants to prove to everyone he is a good person.
The Staff Meeting — and the Guest List
At the first staff meeting, Lisa reveals the season’s setup: a $50,000 bonus, and this time, multiple guest groups arriving simultaneously — the first time that has happened in the show’s history.
First group: Lisa’s nephew Sam Vanderpump and his fiancée Alice, celebrating a recent engagement, along with their “Made in Chelsea” friends Ollie, Gareth, Tina, and Sophie. Second group, arriving mid-day the following day: Stassi Schroeder and Beau. Third group: reality star Ekin-Su, celebrating her birthday, with friends Arda, Jade, and Sophie — who are friendly with Sam and Alice and will join the engagement party festivities. Hagen reveals he is a superfan of Ekin-Su.
Lisa’s parting words: “Don’t fuck it up.”
Secrets and Seductions — and the Meredith Bomb
That evening the staff plays a getting-to-know-you game: Secrets and Seductions. Write a secret on one side, a spark you’re hoping to ignite this summer on the other.
Lewis and Hagen kiss during the game. Hagen makes clear it will not happen again.
Then a secret card gets pulled from the box: “I fucked Andre in Vegas.”
The room goes quiet. Meredith gives an extremely unsincere “sorry” to the group — smiling — and confirms it was her. She and Andre hooked up on the balcony the night after the Season 2 premiere party in Vegas. Hannah confirms she did not think Gabriella knew.
Gabriella pulls Meredith aside immediately. She tells her she wanted it out in the open, she doesn’t regret it, and she wanted everyone to know. Gabriella in confessional: “You’re coming into my domain, rattling off in front of everyone that you had sex with someone I previously had a romantic relationship with. Which I think is very weird.” She warns Meredith: “You want to be someone I enjoy, right?” Meredith rolls her eyes walking away.
Dominic sides with Meredith and says Gabriella’s ego is a little inflated from winning the bonus last year.
Lewis Locks Himself in a Bathroom and Leaves the Show
The most shocking moment of the premiere had nothing to do with a hookup. English butler Lewis, brought in from Kent by way of London’s performing arts world, broke down before the first guests had settled in.
Colleagues noticed he seemed overwhelmed. Production then pulled Lisa aside: Lewis was refusing to film. He would not go to his room unless cameras were unplugged. Lisa found him, tried to talk to him, and he shut the door to a bathroom and locked it. She stood outside trying to get him out. Production eventually walked him out — black hoodie, face covered. By the time Lisa grabbed a golf cart and drove down the driveway yelling his name, he was gone. She never got to say goodbye.
Lisa, in confessional: “Does Lewis not understand how hard it is for me to chase after him in eight-inch heels on the gravel? But I won’t be ignored.”
Lewis left the show entirely. Lisa now has a staffing gap on day one.
Sam and Alice Arrive — and There Is a Baby Name Crisis
The first guests check in: Sam Vanderpump, Alice Yaxley, and the “Made in Chelsea” crew. Over tea, Lisa speaks about how Sam almost died a few months earlier — after a bout of flu, all his organs shut down. Alice called the hospital. Lisa, visibly emotional: “If I lost Sam after losing his dad…” She did not finish the sentence. Lisa’s brother — Sam’s father — died by suicide in 2018. She said his kids mean even more to her since losing him, because it is like holding on to her brother.
Sam then revealed Alice is pregnant with a boy. And the name under consideration: Marmaduke.
Lisa: “That’s the name of a f—king dog. You cannot name your heir to the Vanderpump dynasty—”
Sam: “Marmaduke Vanderpump.”
Lisa: “Why don’t you just call him Scooby-Doo?”
The compromise: Duke. Lisa softened immediately. Sam caught her. “Oh, she’s liking it now.”
Sam then told Lisa how much he appreciates her after everything with his dad — calling her, in the most perfectly delivered line of the episode: “Dad in a wig.”
The Nightcap — and Everything that Follows
Sophie is unhappy with her room from the jump, asking if it is a “broom closet” and whether there is a “torture chamber downstairs” she could occupy instead.
At the nightcap, Nick and Tina from “Made in Chelsea” flirt throughout dinner. They go for a walk, he tells her he is attracted to her, and they make out at a table. By the end of the night they are in bed together — not sleeping.
Hannah, meanwhile, is giving attention to Charlie, one of the bartenders. She tells him he has a “plump ass.” He admits to “an attraction and an affinity for bossy, beautiful women.” Sam, in confessional: “She was giving Charlie attention, and this sucks.” Hannah and Charlie kiss in front of everyone.
Marciano, in confessional: “Do I like watching Hannah kiss other guys? F—k no. Who the f—k would want to see that?” He says it is a respect thing, and he would not do that to her.
Marciano and Sam spy on Hannah, Charlie, and Gabriella from another room, grab more people to spy with them, and get caught. Marciano then approaches Hannah to ask if she is trying to piss him off. Gabriella steps in and tells him Hannah is a brighter person without him.
Marciano later pulls Charlie aside and tells him, man to man, that he and Hannah hooked up one week before arriving in England. She left his house to go to the airport. “So it’s hard for me, and I’m trying to figure this out, and it fucking sucks, so I don’t know what the fuck I’m supposed to do.”
Stassi Arrives — and Goes Directly at Marciano
Stassi Schroeder arrives the next morning and runs straight to Lisa for a hug. It’s not long before she runs to her Aperol Spritz. First confessional: “This season, I don’t give a f—k. I’m drinking Aperol Spritzes in my interviews. K?” She says she is mostly here for the gossip.
Lisa, on why she invited Stassi: “I need somebody to gossip with. I need somebody to play with. It would be rude not to invite Stassi.” She hopes Stassi and Beau spend the summer “connecting and shagging their socks off.”
Stassi spots Marciano. She goes straight for it — she confronted him at the “SLOMW” reunion, where she had hosted, about claiming he slept with Jessi. He says he did not sleep with Jessi and that he was “influenced” to say otherwise. She is not buying it. “Do you know how evil you’d have to be to make up a rumor about somebody like that?”
Marciano’s explanation: He was “influenced.” Scheana Shay three-way called him and Demi to patch things up. He had confided in Scheana a lot. Stassi’s reaction to hearing Scheana’s name: “You get off a show like ‘Vanderpump Rules‘ and you think you’re able to just forge your own path and start over. You don’t have to see your old co-workers if you don’t want to. And then sure enough, it all comes back to Scheana. Always. That is my cross to carry.”
She tells Marciano that Scheana causes a lot of problems, says, ‘I don’t give a f—k.” then looks dead at the camera. Big smile.
Earlier in the episode, Marciano opens up to Hannah about the Mormon Wives situation, telling her the truth will prevail. Hannah says “f—k all of them” and tells him she doesn’t mind defending him because she knows it is not true. In confessional, though, she says she hopes for his sake he stays out of trouble — and that she is really trying to navigate away from Marciano this year.
Marciano’s confessional closes the episode: “There’s a bunch of secrets that are about to come out.”
What’s Coming
The Episode 2 teaser shows Ekin-Su arriving, guests arguing over attention from male staff, Hannah and Sam kissing, and Marciano and Hannah in a blowup fight.
All ten episodes of “Vanderpump Villa” Season 3 are streaming now on Hulu.
The ‘Vanderpump Villa’ Season 3 reunion airs April 30th. See what we know and watch the trailer here.
More ‘Vanderpump Villa’ Content
Catch up on everything leading into the reunion:
- What Are the “Vanderpump Villa” Cast Up to Now?
- Who’s on the Hot Seat at the “Vanderpump Villa” Reunion?
- The Wildest Moments From “Vanderpump Villa” Season 3
- Questions the “Vanderpump Villa” Reunion Needs to Answer
- Everything to Know Before the “Vanderpump Villa” Reunion
- Who Won the Bonuses In “Vanderpump Villa” Season 3?
For more “Vanderpump Villa” content, click here.
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