S28E3: Gypsy Rose Blanchard

In the 18th century, modern Germany continued to be a patchwork of various duchies, which kept German nobles in the marriage rotation throughout Europe. So it was that two brothers - Ernst and Leopold - came into the world in the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld in 1784 and 1790. One would become the King of Belgium, and one would be the legal father of Prince Albert, later the husband of Queen Victoria. We say "legal father" because apparently it's not 100% clear that Ernst's estranged wife, the long suffering Princess Louise, wasn't comforting her brother-in-law after the death of his wife, England's Princess Charlotte, whose death in childbirth prompted the Hanoverian race to reproduce that gave the world Queen Victoria.  It is, as they say, complicated. Want early, ad-free episodes, regular Dumpster Dives, bonus divorces, limited series, Zoom hangouts, and more? Join us at patreon.com/trashydivorces! Want a personalized message for someone in your life? Check us out on Cameo! To advertise on our podcast, please reach out to [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Once upon a time, pop megastar Taylor Swift was an assuming teenager transitioning from a country music past into an unknowable future. Along the way, she met a Jonas brother, Joe, and for a few gossipy months in 2008, the pair were an item. And then... well, then a decade and a half of history and diss tracks would begin to slowly unspool. Want early, ad-free episodes, regular Dumpster Dives, bonus divorces, limited series, Zoom hangouts, and more? Join us at patreon.com/trashydivorces! Want a personalized message for someone in your life? Check us out on Cameo! To advertise on our podcast, please reach out to [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Back in the early 80s, divorce lawyer to the stars (and Trashy Divorces alum) Marvin Mitchelson took on the biggest case of his career - and one that seems to have gotten away from him a bit. Sheika Dena al Fassi, the wife of Saudi businessman (and Saudi royal family member) Mohammed al Fassi, was filing for divorce, and estimates of Mohammed's fortune ran as high as $3 billion. On the one hand, Dena won the divorce case handily. On the other, Mohammed had long since left the United States with their four children and had no intention of paying the settlement that a California court ordered. Even decades later - even decades after both Mohammad and Marvin Mitchelson had died - Dena was still trying to collect on a divorce settlement that grew into the hundreds of millions of dollars through the magic of compound interest. This episode originally aired on Patreon on February 26, 2025. Want early, ad-free episodes, regular Dumpster Dives, bonus divorces, limited series, Zoom hangouts, and more? Join us at patreon.com/trashydivorces! Want a personalized message for someone in your life? Check us out on Cameo! To advertise on our podcast, please reach out to [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the more casual observers of popular culture, Halle Bailey may only register as Ariel in the 2023 The Little Mermaid remake, but the more discerning know that this young artist has been doing the hard work, alongside her sister Chloe, since she was barely out of diapers. She excels in music - she and her sister have garnered five Grammy nominations and count Beyonce as their mentor - as well as acting, but one area of her life that maybe isn't up to her high standards is her love life, which lately includes a bitter split from ex-boyfriend and her baby's daddy, rapper and YouTuber DDG.   Want early, ad-free episodes, regular Dumpster Dives, bonus divorces, limited series, Zoom hangouts, and more? Join us at patreon.com/trashydivorces! Want a personalized message for someone in your life? Check us out on Cameo! To advertise on our podcast, please reach out to [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

America swooned for Sex and the City, HBO's glamorous dive into the lives of four women in New York City at the bleeding edge of the 21st century. But early in the series run, there were already rumors of cast disputes, factions, and trouble on set. Had the show been less singular, and less beloved, the actresses likely would have emerged unscathed by the stories, but instead, Kim Cattrall and Sarah Jessica Parker have spent two decades fielding questions about their alleged feud, and plotting career strategies around the will-it or won't-it return of their most famous work product. It doesn't sound like it's been easy for either of them.   Want early, ad-free episodes, regular Dumpster Dives, bonus divorces, limited series, Zoom hangouts, and more? Join us at patreon.com/trashydivorces! Want a personalized message for someone in your life? Check us out on Cameo! To advertise on our podcast, please reach out to [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices