Lisa Vanderpump gave a straightforward response when paparazzi asked about claims in Scheana Shay’s new memoir, choosing to talk about more important matters instead. The restaurant owner didn’t hold back when addressing accusations that she used Shay’s personal problems for television drama.
During a Tuesday encounter with TMZ photographers in Beverly Hills, Vanderpump made her position clear about Shay’s accusations. The 64-year-old reality star showed no interest in what she considers false claims from her former employee.
“I don’t care what she says,” Vanderpump stated bluntly, according to TMZ. “I’m more concerned about Ozzy Osbourne dying — that’s the saddest thing. Important things are what matter to me, not her [expletive].”
Vanderpump’s response came just days after Shay promoted her book, “My Good Side,” with interviews that contained serious claims about their working relationship.
What Shay Claims Happened
Shay’s memoir contains detailed claims about how Vanderpump allegedly orchestrated situations for television drama, particularly regarding Shay’s 2006 relationship with actor Eddie Cibrian. The controversy centers on a 2013 episode of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” where Vanderpump introduced Shay to Cibrian’s ex-wife, Brandi Glanville.
Shay claims that Vanderpump was aware of the affair beforehand but pretended to be surprised on camera. “She low-key used my real-life pain to launch her TV empire — and what an empire she has,” Shay said in a recent interview with Us Weekly.
The former Vanderpump Rules cast member also suggested that Vanderpump deliberately created dramatic moments for storylines. “She gaslit me about it for a decade instead of just coming to me in the beginning,” Shay stated. “That’s the thing with Lisa: She doesn’t make mistakes. She makes moves and then calls them coincidences.”
Shay’s book has achieved commercial success, currently ranking as a bestseller on Amazon. The memoir also details specific instances where Shay claims Vanderpump told her how to behave during filming, including a Season 6 incident involving James Kennedy and Katie Maloney. Shay alleges she received direct instructions about how to respond during filmed staff meetings.
Vanderpump’s paparazzi response follows earlier remarks she made about Shay’s upcoming book during a May 1 appearance on “Watch What Happens Live” with Andy Cohen. When asked about Shay potentially writing about her in the memoir, Vanderpump didn’t hold back her thoughts.
“Oh good lord. Well, that’s probably just to sell the book because she hasn’t got anything else to say,” Vanderpump told Cohen. “I’ve heard she said something nasty recently like, ‘I only call her when I need something.’ True that! Right? I’ve got 600 people I work with.”
Vanderpump went on to explain that her most recent contact with Shay was to invite her and her daughter, Summer Moon Honey Davies, to her grandson Theodore “Teddy” Sabo’s birthday party. “So yes, that’s when I called her, yeah,” she admitted.
“The Valley” cast member Kristen Doute quickly defended Shay in the comments of the official W”atch What Happens Live” Instagram post. “What an ego response,” Doute wrote. “I’m proud of [Scheana] for speaking her truth. Not an easy thing to do.”
Shay responded to Doute’s support with “Ily [I love you]!!!”
Doute had previously hinted at the memoir’s contents during an April 22 podcast appearance on “Bitch Bible.” “When Scheana’s book comes out, she told me that there’s a lot of tea about Lisa in there that the world would like to know about,” Doute revealed.
Shay has described her relationship with Vanderpump as mostly transactional in recent years. “I don’t talk to her too often,” she said on the “Two T’s in a Pod” podcast. “She usually calls when I need something. That was recent when I talked to her. She had a question about a friend of mine on another show of hers and that was pretty much it.”
