‘Southern Charm’: Eliza Limehouse Opens Up About Her Dad Chip Limehouse’s Affair

Eliza Limehouse is a brave woman. Not only did she make her official Southern Charm debut as a full-time cast member this season by walking into the lion’s den, or, Patricia Altschul’s dinner party where she wasn’t quite met with a warm greeting, but now on the Bravo series, she’s opening up about the most painful moments of her life.

In the most recent episode, Eliza goes to her family’s plantation, Airy Hall, to fish and chat with her brother, Chase, and father Chip. “This is my favorite place on Earth,” she says of the grounds where she grew up, where her horses are, and where her family celebrates holidays every year.

“Growing up, my dad was one of my idols, we were like this,” Eliza explains. “But after the affair, I didn’t talk to my dad for almost a year,” she admits while getting choked up. “We went from being this perfect well-known family to broken apart. I just wanted to like, pull the sheets up and just hide,” she said. “I’ve forgiven him but it’s never gonna be like it was. We have scars, ya know? He does too.”

Eliza even goes on to tell her dad, “I feel like, not as welcome since the affair.”

Chip cheated on his wife and Eliza’s mom, Susan, in 2016, and the couple got a divorce. Allegedly, the former member of the South Carolina House of Representatives had a daughter with a woman named Melissa Mims.

In the second episode of this season, Eliza opened up to pal Cameran Eubanks, saying her mom has declared “she’s never getting remarried.”

“My parents divorced two years ago and everybody knows about it because of our last name,” Eliza explained. “Being a Limehouse is like being Charleston royalty,” she said, pointing to the fact that her dad and grandfather were involved in politics. She went on to talk about how terrible that period was for her mom, confessing, “My father’s affair was the hardest thing I’ve ever gone through. My dad was my idol so it sucked, it really did.”

Eliza goes on to say, “I don’t come from a perfect family, I come from a mess. We got blocked from social gatherings, like parties we’d normally get invited to, we don’t get invited anymore.”

And just as you can hear her voice break, she says, “I don’t usually talk about it so it makes me emotional.”

It’s not only brave of her to open up and share her story on TV, but it’s likely relatable to many watching, who now get to learn that Eliza isn’t just an annoyingly chatty Charleston gal, she’s got some real feelings to share with the world.

Southern Charm airs Wednesday at 8pm ET/PT on Bravo. 

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