Margaret Josephs Defends Melissa, Slams Kathy’s Claims

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Margaret Josephs addressed Kathy Wakile‘s claims against Melissa Gorga on a radio show on Wednesday, confirming she knew about their secret lunch before Kathy made it public.

After Kathy, 59, accused Melissa, 45, of making it seem as if she wanted to reconcile, even though they already had, the 58-year-old Real Housewives of New Jersey star shared why Melissa withheld details about their meeting, expressed disappointment in Kathy’s recent portrayal of the events, and addressed potential season 15 casting.

“I did know about that lunch. Melissa had told me, and Kathy told me because we go to the same hairdresser,” Margaret revealed on the April 30 episode of SiriusXM’s Page Six Radio. “Melissa was keeping silent because she was asked to keep silent. She was respecting family boundaries. I don’t know why Kathy said that.”

Because she knew Melissa had been asked by Kathy not to say anything about the lunch date, Margaret felt bad about how it played out in the press.

“I know Melissa, for a fact, was being kind. Melissa said to me, ‘Don’t tell anybody. Kathy asked me not to say anything,’ I clearly did not say anything. Melissa wasn’t going to use it for clout or to make a story about it. It was a private moment. That’s why Melissa kept it silent, so I don’t know why that came out like that,” Margaret noted. “That was disappointing to me.”

According to Margaret, Kathy and Melissa met around a year ago after seeing one another at a charity event.

“Melissa had a warm moment about it. Kathy even told me at the hairdresser’s. I said I knew about it, and she said she didn’t want it out there, talked about in the press. So I was a little like, ‘What’s going on here?’” Margaret explained of Kathy’s decision to suddenly go public.

Although Margaret doesn’t know what happened at the lunch due to how private Melissa was about it, she did know that Melissa hoped to mend fences between Kathy and her cousin, Joe Gorga, 50, since they have homes on the same street.

As for her own relationship with Kathy, Margaret recalled doing a recent home tour with Kathy and confirmed they “get along great.”

“I don’t want this to be some kind of beef or anything,” Margaret clarified. “[But] Melissa and I are extremely close … [and] I know what happened and the truth is Melissa was asked to keep quiet … Melissa was just shocked because she wasn’t lying.”

Then, after stating that she hadn’t yet spoken to Kathy, Margaret moved on to RHONJ casting, sharing that because the current group is a “tough crew,” producers often struggle to find ladies willing to join and have widened their horizons. 

“They cast every season because they’re always thinking, ‘Is there someone interesting that we could add in?’ [And] I’ve heard of tons of women being cast,” she revealed. “No one’s reached out to me. [But] I know of women being cast .. I found out women in South Jersey, all over the place. But we’ll see what happens.”

As for the current pause, Margaret added, “I’m fine not filming because I’ll be traveling. I’m going to Italy.”