Ladies of London Recap: Back in the Saddle

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I love telling Americans a joke: “Do you know what they call Thanksgiving in England?” When they ask “What?”, the punchline is “Thursday.” It’s a strange experience celebrating American holidays while living abroad, seeing pictures from home when life carries on as usual where you are. That’s exactly what the Fourth of July feels like in London. While everyone back home is celebrating and enjoying a long week off, we’re just here in England, not really feeling the independence, and definitely sweating because there’s no air conditioning – it’s a bit unsettling. The one exception is Super Bowl Sunday. Then, I can happily ignore the fact that players are risking serious brain injuries just so billionaires running companies like Fan Duel can get richer.

Margo’s Fourth of July is a bit low-key. She celebrates with her handsome husband, Jacques (though I’m still not sure what he does for work), her stepchildren, and their daughter. They have some patriotic decorations, party favors, and fries, plus what Margo jokingly calls “posh dogs” – a fancy version of hot dogs, since you can’t find real American ones here. Attempts to buy decent hot dogs usually result in something more like sausage. It’s odd, but every London supermarket has an “American” section filled with sugary cereal, Pop-Tarts, Nerds, and these huge, unappetizing hot dogs in jars filled with liquid – they look like museum exhibits! Still, Margo’s right: the most American thing about the party is the abundance of ice in everyone’s drinks. Whenever I have guests, I offer them water “American style” – meaning with plenty of ice – to show some national pride.

Myka’s brother, Bron, is visiting from the States for her birthday, and he’s incredibly attractive – a really fit personal trainer with a distinctive mustache. He looks like he could step right out of a vintage strongman act! He joined Myka and some friends for a workout class in Richmond, and surprisingly, Martha Sitwell showed up with a yoga mat. Missé and Margo are always in shape, but Martha definitely isn’t used to exercising, although she seemed very interested when Bron took his shirt off. Even Mark, who prefers painting flowers, probably found that moment appealing. The next thing we see is Martha working out with her own trainer! It’s a shock, considering she’s likely been to a gym as rarely as Kimi has been to an AA meeting – basically never, or by accident. But apparently, she’s decided to get in shape. It’s always fun when someone unexpected surprises you like that.

After exercise class, the conversation turned to Martha’s picnic, where Margo and Kimi had a falling out. Margo claims Kimi started it, while Mark and Kimi seemed to intentionally upset her. Margo feels like she was ganged up on and ignored, but others point out that Martha tried to help. Margo does offer some interesting observations about Mark, suggesting he’s insecure and hides his true self behind a clownish persona, even if that means being unkind to get a laugh. However, she goes too far by calling him a “psychopath” and a “liar,” and repeatedly accuses him of “gaslighting” – a term that feels overused these days. Is it time to stop using the word “gaslighting” altogether? Maybe we should just retire it completely.

We get a better sense of who Mark is through his visits to the various artisans he hires – antique dealers, muralists, even whimsical craftspeople working on his Italian villa. He reveals he was bullied as a child, leading him to believe Margo wasn’t truly bullied, only lightly teased about her unfortunate fashion choices. Mark projects an image of being above reproach, but this is simply a way to protect himself. While Margo often misjudges things, she accurately recognized Mark’s underlying insecurities, likely because she shares similar vulnerabilities.

This show is really strange because the drama keeps getting twisted and misdirected. Kimi started a feud with Missé, but it somehow led to a fight between Kimi and Margo. Now Margo’s upset with Mark! It feels like things are escalating quickly, though thankfully, it’s not actually going to get physical. It’s just a lot of unnecessary drama. Myka threw a birthday party at a polo field, complete with riding lessons, mostly so everyone could admire her attractive brother in cowboy boots – he really leaned into the American aesthetic. It’s baffling that Missé, who’s single and clearly getting attention, didn’t even try to flirt with Bron – it would have been a great plotline! When Kimi showed up, she and Margo quickly made amends. Kimi wore a flower crown as a peace offering and jokingly called herself a mess, and Margo responded by saying they finally agreed on something. Everyone laughed it off. It’s a smart move, Margo – disarm the drama with humor, and it loses its power.

Margo and Mark are still arguing, even though they’re refusing to speak directly to each other. Honestly, they’re both in the wrong. Mark is being unnecessarily mean to Margo, and she’s taking it too personally. The more she dwells on it and talks about it, the more annoyed Mark becomes. It’s also a misunderstanding of what’s bothering her. The group is telling Mark she’s upset about a comment he made about her coat, but that’s not the core issue. She’s actually hurt that he’s friendly to her face and then gossips about her behind her back, which is a bigger problem than he realizes. He thinks she’s overreacting, and he’d be right if it were just about the coat. However, Margo is right to point out a pattern of this behavior. Ultimately, they don’t need a huge conversation, but Margo needs to stand up for herself a bit, show she can handle a joke, and they need to build some mutual respect. If they did, they’d be much happier.

At the party, Mark and Emma share a heartfelt conversation where Mark reveals his father is hospitalized and he’s leaving for Italy tomorrow to be with him. Despite this, he’s also preoccupied with an online chair auction on his phone. Emma jokingly points out they all have their coping mechanisms – she runs, he buys chairs. This explains his dismissive reaction when Missé tries to get him to make amends with Margo. He simply says, “I have more important things to worry about.” While he may not prioritize resolving the conflict, ignoring someone’s feelings when a simple apology could fix things seems insensitive. Even if he doesn’t know Margo well, considering they’re working together, a little effort would be appreciated. Instead, he insists, “She’s unimportant to me,” which feels unnecessarily harsh, especially considering he claims to understand the impact of bullying.

Martha was really enjoying the party. It turns out she’s an incredibly skilled horse rider – she used to be the best side-saddle rider in England, which is a pretty big deal! She’s a much better rider than anyone else trying out for the polo team, even Myka, who planned the party and got engaged while playing polo. We also discover Martha has a special connection to a horse named Daphne, who is actually the daughter of her late horse – making Daphne her horse’s granddaughter. After her divorce, Martha couldn’t afford to care for Daphne, so she’s now living at a horse sanctuary. Martha feels too ashamed to visit Daphne, as she’s a painful reminder of her past struggles.

Despite a long afternoon of polo, Martha feels refreshed and full of energy. She wants to visit her granddaughter, who loves horses, and plans to take her to a movie and buy her a gift, feeling a bit like a parent who only makes rare visits. Being around the horses is making Martha feel strong and revitalized, more so than any exercise she’s tried. Kimi observes, “Life is all about beautiful moments.”

Martha sighed and replied, “I just want everything to be perfect.” It’s no surprise – she always looks as if she’s mourning a loss that hasn’t happened, and she truly believes in hoping for the very best outcome.

Kimi responds honestly, “That’s not true, it’s about valuing what is good.” These two perspectives represent fundamentally different ways of seeing the world. Martha believes everything should be perfect and is let down when it isn’t. Kimi, on the other hand, expects things to be difficult, but recognizes that occasionally, life will offer a beautiful surprise – a perfect summer day with friends, celebration, and unexpected joy. Kimi emphasizes how to react when these moments happen. You must truly cherish them, seize them, and hold on for as long as possible. These precious times are fleeting, like wild horses. You have to jump on, embrace the exhilarating ride, and hold tight, even when it’s challenging, savoring every moment with all your heart.

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2026-04-10 05:55