Ladies of London Recap: British Psycho

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This episode skipped the usual introduction to English culture, so I wanted to share an observation of my own. When Myka delivers a care package to Emma’s London home before Emma runs a 10k in Africa for the Tusk charity (which the speaker jokingly compares to Fleetwood Mac’s second-best album), we see a glimpse of vines near Emma’s window. It initially seemed like the editors were hinting that Emma’s house was falling apart, with nature reclaiming it. However, I immediately recognized what was actually happening because the same thing occurs in my own home.

As a film buff, I’ve noticed something really strange here in the U.K. – almost no one has air conditioning! Even the cinemas don’t have it, which is wild. Honestly, it’s usually only hot for a couple of weeks in the summer, so it’s not a huge deal. Everyone just opens their windows to try and cool down. But here’s the really baffling part: no one uses window screens! You never see those expandable ones, like you find all over New York, that let the air in but keep the bugs out. The only place I’ve ever spotted them in England is at Buckingham Palace, and that just proves we need to make these things accessible to everyone!

From June to September, our houses are filled with flies and bugs because we keep the windows open without screens. They land on the TV while we’re watching shows like Love Island, and all sorts of things from outside come in – even vines growing on the buildings. I have a beautiful wisteria vine that often creeps inside through the open windows. When it rains and I close the windows, the vines get trapped, making it look like I live in a messy treehouse. Emma already has a lot going on – she’s been running, dealing with a health issue, and is receiving visits from Myka with gifts – so we shouldn’t tease her about the plants growing inside.

I might be the only one truly excited about indoor vines (and my plan to get rich selling window screens!), but everyone seemed captivated when Margo brought in a pet psychic to communicate with Martha’s magpie, Hecate. I previously thought it was silly when Shannon Beador consulted a psychic about her dog, Archie, but a psychic talking to a bird? That’s brilliant! The animal communicator, Jackie, revealed that Hecate believes she’s in charge and essentially owns Martha, which seems pretty spot-on based on what we’ve all observed. Hecate also shared that magpies simply want to eat, play, and aren’t responsible for any bad luck. While we didn’t find out if Hecate is Martha’s mother reincarnated (they share a love of alcohol, men, and drama – honestly, relatable!), she did manage to make peace with Margo, who was skeptical of her, by accepting a chip and gently resting her foot on Margo’s arm.

Things are relatively calm before the party. Myka starts a YouTube channel about etiquette, Lottie goes to her ultrasound appointment, and Missé makes a memorable entrance to meet Margo’s teenage step-sons, letting her cleavage take center stage. She greets the boys, compliments their jewelry, and watches them walk away, awkwardly covering themselves with books – which is fitting, considering they’re in middle school. Now that Missé and Kimi have reconciled, a running joke is that Missé can’t seem to keep her breasts contained. It’s an unusual role for her, as Margo usually handles the more provocative moments. At the park, Missé tells Margo she’s made peace with Kimi and wants to move forward, but also reveals that Mark has been gossiping about Margo’s appearance and attitude. She adds that he’s been trying to win favor with Emma because his parents have cut him off financially. It’s all pretty uninteresting.

Mark can be really irritating, though. He constantly tries to be clever and sarcastic, like a modern Oscar Wilde, and it feels like he can’t be genuine about anything. It’s entertaining to watch on TV, but I imagine he’d be exhausting to actually know. For example, when he went to Martha’s My Fair Ladythemed party, he dismissed the theme as “tedious” and declared he wasn’t going to participate. Instead, he showed up wearing a bright yellow safari jacket. Margo said he looked less like the Man in the Yellow Hat from Curious George* and more like Colonel Mustard on vacation.

Okay, so everything finally explodes at this party with Kimi, Margo, Mark, and Martha. Margo clearly got the message about a theme and showed up in a white dress with this huge, surprisingly good-looking feathered jacket, and white cowboy boots that Kimi despises. When she greets Mark, he dramatically says, “The bird has landed!” and tells her she looks great. But then, in his little interview segment, he admits he just says that to everyone and doesn’t mean it. Seriously? That’s exactly what I’m talking about! You’ve gotta have some principles, and Mark… I don’t even think he bothers standing up for anything, let alone himself. When Margo tries to call him out on his behavior – like making fun of her clothes – he doesn’t even deny it. He just deflects and says, “Well, there was that one time we talked about a crushed velvet jumpsuit.” It’s just…wow.

Things really escalate when Kimi, someone Margo had been deliberately avoiding, shows up wearing a ridiculously small top hat and veil – it’s so over-the-top it looks like something out of a Dickens novel. Amy Sherman-Palladino would probably spend a fortune to get her hands on it! Mark explains he’d previously told people Margo was simply getting into character, but she misinterpreted that as him calling her fake. Kimi quickly jumps in to correct him, clarifying he’d actually called her fake, and Mark seems pleased to have “helped” clear things up. He then turns on Margo, suggesting she must be a bit harsh to pull off the look, comparing her to Cruella de Vil and adding, with a strange flourish, that at least the feathers on the hat weren’t wasted.

I’ve been thinking about what Margo calls a “posh putdown,” and honestly, it feels more damaging than just playful teasing. It reminds me of how Lisa Vanderpump used to playfully jab at people – something her American friends just didn’t get. But what Mark is doing is different; he’s delivering a clear insult disguised as a joke, and Kimi is actually supporting him. It’s awful to watch because Margo clearly doesn’t know how to respond and ends up just walking away. I truly believe the only way to deal with someone like that is to hit them back with an insult of your own and then laugh it off. It’s a shame Margo already used her best comeback with the ‘Man in the Yellow Hat’ line, she could have really used it now.

Kimi attempted to talk to Margo privately, but the conversation quickly devolved into a shouting match. Kimi accused Margo of being a phony, a bad friend, and predicted Martha would be furious if she knew how insincere Margo was – and she even criticized Margo’s boots! She repeatedly called Margo fake and pointed out she was from Los Angeles. Margo finally retaliated by mocking Kimi’s affected English accent, comparing it to the voice of Mr. Monopoly.

I was completely floored when Kimi started berating Martha for not sticking up for her with Margo. But Martha’s response? It was perfect. She just bluntly told Kimi, ‘You’re a psychotic bitch. I love you for it, but you are.’ Then, she calmly but firmly told Kimi that her behavior towards Missé in the car was wrong, and she didn’t back down. It was the most I’ve ever seen Martha stand up for herself, and honestly, it was incredibly captivating.

Okay, so things got intense. After Kimi stormed off to join the others, Martha tried to get her to calm down, telling her to stop lashing out. Then Kimi just completely opened up, telling Martha how much she loves her, how she only came to the party to be near her, and even called her a sister! She got really emotional, started tearing up, and honestly, it was a lot. Missé, being Missé, reacted by… well, showing off a bit, excited that Kimi was finally feeling something. Martha admitted she loved Kimi too, but then immediately called her a psychotic mess. Kimi just shrugged it off, saying she can’t help being who she is. But the whole time, I felt like something else was watching. There was this…presence in the tree, some kind of creature, totally fascinated by their drama. It wanted to intervene, to do something with their energy, maybe even mess with them a little, but it couldn’t. Apparently, the medium it needed wasn’t around. So it just took off, cawing, and, yeah, it pooped on Martha’s picnic table on its way out. It was…a moment.

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2026-04-03 06:55