Caroline Stanbury & Chanel Ayan Know How To Get Under Your Skin

The night before Chanel Ayan and Caroline Stanbury log into our Zoom interview, Ayan had been partying with New York City drag queens “until 3 in the morning,” she says. Her co-star had watched a movie at Bryant Park instead and gotten a good night’s sleep. “So boring,” Ayan says from Stanbury’s hotel room the next morning, rolling her eyes without a hint of exhaustion.

Their opposing personalities are at the heart of The Real Housewives of Dubai’s dramatic second season, currently airing on Bravo. Ayan, 46, emerged as the show’s breakout star when it debuted in 2021. The Kenyan model gives goats as a present and dresses in couture, whether at the grocery store or Stanbury’s engagement party, to which she controversially wore a veil. British-born Stanbury was her dry-witted foil. She’d already dealt with her fair share of reality TV foolery on Bravo’s Ladies of London in 2014, and she had no time for Ayan’s antics.

“Apart from the girls on the cast, everyone was saying, ‘You guys would get on,’ and I was like, ‘What the f*ck are you talking about?’” Stanbury recalls.

But after the Season 1 reunion, they got stuck on the same 16-hour flight back to Dubai, and their connection finally clicked. In Season 2, they struck up a full-blown friendship, having taken time to understand each other’s humor and backgrounds.

“Now I can be myself,” Ayan explains. “I can say anything I want without her thinking ‘Oh, my God, Ayan means it in a bad way.’ Even if sometimes I’m like, ‘You’re a f*cking b*tch today.’”

Stanbury adds, “I’ve gotten so much Botox you can’t tell whether I’m laughing or not, and she didn’t get my humor at all. Now she understands that the meaner I am, it means I like you.”

Below, Ayan and Stanbury reflect on friendship’s highlights, moments cut from the show, and the upcoming season of The Traitors.

Stanbury, do you regret calling Ayan the rudest wedding guest ever last season after she showed up in a bridal dress and veil?

Stanbury: I stand by it.

Ayan: I was not rude at all. She told me to wear white.

Stanbury: But she had her veil too. And you came in a blond wig.

Ayan: I’ve always worn blond, but that day was to piss you off.

Stanbury: I know. She wanted a reaction; she got one.

Ayan: I should’ve walked the aisle beside you. That would’ve been even more fun.

Stanbury, what is your favorite Ayan look?

Stanbury: I couldn’t wear one thing Ayan wears. I love the red one where she looks like Bill and Ben, the Flowerpot Men. It looks like she’s got one of those very old 80-year-old women’s flower swimming caps.

Ayan: That was couture made from scratch. This is why she doesn’t know fashion. Did you see that these girls this season really stepped up? They’re all wearing couture. [Caroline] Brooks is always dressing as a church lady, like she’s going to pray, which she needs to.

Stanbury: She’s going to a rich dead husband’s funeral. We love that.

Ayan, when did Stanbury beat you in the fashion department?

Ayan: I liked the green jacket she wore when I gave her the pineapple. I also liked her blue dress at Michael [Davis]’ kick-out party.

Stanbury: Oh, my boobs came out.

Ayan: That was great. The reason why [our friendship] works is she does not want to try to be me in any capacity.

Stanbury: If I put on that tiger dress [Ayan’s] wearing in a confessional, can you imagine what I would look like?

Ayan, what can you say about your fallout with BFF Lesa Milan after you showed Stanbury a voice note that she sent you of Sara Al Madani talking about Caroline Brooks?

Ayan: It’s classic Housewives stuff. In Bali, you see Lesa going “The voice note that I sent you” before anybody said anything.

Stanbury: It could have been a voice note from anyone, so she knew what she was doing.

Ayan: Exactly. I was like, “Oh, my God. What the hell is going on?” She was like, “I don’t trust you.” I was confused by it, so that’s why I left the dinner table. I was protecting [Lesa] in front of all these girls, not telling them you knew about the voice note that came from you, and you’re throwing me under the bus. Should I have played the voice note? No.

Stanbury: Of course, it was great fun for me.

Ayan: For her, not for me. There was no reason for this reaction. I saw a different side of her. I get it, you’re upset, but there’s no need for you to say “I don’t trust you,” like this is the first time you heard about it. Did I f*ck up? Yes. But it shouldn’t be enough for us not to be in a better place.

Stanbury: If that breaks such a close friendship, then that’s weird in itself.

Is there a moment that was cut from the show that you wish had made it?

Ayan: We were mic’d before we went to that dinner, and I did tell Lesa that the voice note was going to come out. I don’t know why that wasn’t there. My fight with Stanbury in Bali was a big deal, and 90% was removed.

Stanbury: Maybe more of my work life, because some of the girls on the cast think I do nothing for a living.

Ayan: What do you mean? Michael pays your bills.

Stanbury: That’s my point.

Ayan: It’s not true, by the way.

Stanbury: Having done a show before, I understand that this isn’t a race, it’s a marathon. Each season, more of our lives come out. We’re so emotionally attached to our stories. That’s something you and I talk about a lot.

Ayan: I feel like I’m watching a show that most of my stuff is not in. It pisses me off.

Stanbury: It’s just a long game. She’s going to be on it for years, and they’re going to see her family more.

Ayan: Yeah, because I’m too fabulous. I need people to see my life.

Stanbury: But it’s Housewives, about six women fighting, so it’s not like that.

Which Housewife would you never want to go up against in an argument?

Ayan: I’m not scared of anybody, but if I had to choose, I would say Karen Huger. Did you see how she silenced Lesa like a baby [at BravoCon], “You little girl there”? Yeah, I’m not [facing] Karen, Kenya Moore, or NeNe Leakes. You, Stanbury? You don’t want to go against me.

Stanbury: You come across hard, but you’ve got a soft shell. Erika Jayne could probably take me in an argument. She’s good. I wouldn’t want to be on the wrong side of Teresa [Giudice]. She’d rip me a new one. But actually, I get on with them both.

Ayan, how would you describe your experience on The Traitors?

Ayan: Oh, my God, I can’t say much because the contract is so deep, way more than Housewives. All I can say is I made really good friends. I became friends with Zac Efron’s brother [Dylan], who is so hot, right? I kept looking at him all night. One time I thought I was going to die. I’m not lying, I literally showed my boobs to him and some others.

Stanbury: No one wants that.

Ayan: Oh, they did. I became very good friends with Robyn [Dixon] from Potomac, who gave me the best compliment. She goes, “I’ve watched your season. I thought you’re all performative. How are you the exact same person on TV?” I liked Chrishell [Stause]. I became friends with Gabby [Windey] from The Bachelorette. She’s so sexy.

Stanbury, have you ever considered Traitors?

Ayan: I think Stanbury would be a great traitor.

Stanbury: When she told me, I was gutted for whoever her team was because she’s a terrible liar and can’t pull a straight face to save her life. It should have been me.

Ayan: She can lie, and she’s got a really good poker face. You would never know.

Stanbury: I’m saying this having never seen the show.

Ayan: [It’s like] what you do on Housewives.

Stanbury: OK, I can do it.

This interview was edited and condensed for clarity.