Lara Sophia 
Tamra Judge opens up to Bravo producer Alex Baskin about how she got cast on RHOC and how she was blindsided by her firing in 2020.
On the latest episode of Bravo’s Hot Mic podcast, Tamra Judge sat down with RHOC executive producer Alex Baskin to discuss everything from joining the OC Housewives cast during season 3 in 2007 to how she was eventually fired ahead of season 15 in 2020.
Tamra recalled when she received word she wasn’t being asked back for another season of RHOC.
The 56-year-old joked with the RHOC ep that he “ruined” her life the day he called to fire her from the show after 12 seasons.
“The day you tried to ruin my vacation and my life? … Oh, that was a great call. Probably one of the best calls I’ve ever gotten, ever,” Tamra quipped.
It turns out Tamra was camping without much cell reception when she caught wind that Alex was trying to reach her. Tamra suggested he text her, which is when the RHOC ep made it clear that the conversation needed to happen over the phone.
“First of all,” Tamra explained, “I was camping, and there’s not a lot of cell service there. So, I happened to drive up to the main road just to check in at home [with the kids],” who she notes were “too boujee” to go camping.
Tamra notes that when she finally got cell service, she saw “all these missed calls and a text message from [Alex].” At that point, Tamra realized that she was being fired from RHOC.
“Oh sh*t, you’re firing me,” Tamra recalls saying to herself.
As Bravo fans know, Tamra took a two-year hiatus from RHOC before returning for season 17 in 2023. It’s highly likely that Tamra will return for season 18.
Meanwhile, the story of how Tamra got hired on RHOC is even juicier.
According to Tamra, she knew her marriage to ex-husband Simon Barney wouldn’t last long before she joined the season 3 cast of RHOC.
However, she had no means to support herself or her three children without Simon since he was the family’s breadwinner. Tamra occasionally worked in real estate but had no real income or money of her own, so when her neighbor told her they were casting for RHOC, she filled out the online application and did her best to catch producers’ attention.
Tamra explained:
“I knew that my marriage probably was not gonna work out. It wasn’t the life that I saw for myself, but I had three kids. I had my real estate license. I did it part-time, but I didn’t have really a career for myself.
So, basically, my girlfriend who lived next door, Pam, we were [messaging each other on AOL Instant Messanger]. And she said, ‘Hey. Did you see this? They’re doing a casting call for Orange County Housewives.’ And I said, ‘Oh god. I go, I’m so boring.’
And so, I filled out the application online. No pictures were given. No nothing. But I filled it out like I was a 15-year-old boy. Like sex all the time. And then I got a call the next day.”
RHOC will return for season 18 in 2024.
