Susan Noles, a contestant on the first season of The Golden Bachelor, has come to the defense of the show’s leading man, Gerry Turner, and claimed she knows the real reason for his split from Theresa Nist.
Speaking on the latest episode of SiriusXM’s The Jess Cagle Show with Julia Cunningham, Noles slammed Nist for making a promise to Turner she couldn’t keep, claiming the divorce happened because the golden rose recipient didn’t want to move.
“I’ve gotta support [Turner] a little bit. I feel like he got the wrong end of it,” Noles said, per Entertainment Tonight. “Theresa decided not to move and not to quit her job. He got frustrated. Who can blame him? I mean, I would’ve never said I would move to that place, wherever that is in the middle of nowhere.”
Turner, a retired restaurateur, lives at a lake house in Indiana, while Nist, a financial services professional, lives and works in New Jersey. Despite living miles apart, the reality stars had previously said they were looking to move in together somewhere between their respective home states.
“On the first date, he spoke to me about possibly moving to the Charleston area. I said, ‘Well, wow.’ I have a son who lives in South Carolina. I said, ‘That would work,’” Nist previously told ET after the former couple got engaged. “It wasn’t until the Fantasy Suite that the conversation came back to that, and we realized South Carolina is probably where we’re going.”
Susan Noles on The Golden Bachelor; ABC
Turner and Nist got engaged during the finale of The Golden Bachelor, which aired on November 30, 2023, and tied the knot at the La Quinta Resort in California during a televised special on January 4, 2024. They announced their decision to separate on April 12.
Fellow Golden Bachelor alum Kathy Swarts also appeared on the The Jess Cagle Show, where she praised both Turner and Nist.
“Gerry’s a nice guy. Theresa’s a lovely lady. S*** happens. Sorry. It does,” Swarts stated. “We like them both, but yeah. You know, I’m sorry. You know someone a month or six weeks and these things happen.”
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“I think they got caught up in the moment,” Noles added. “We watched them fall in love. They bonded that first night, on that date. It was real.”
While fans are still discussing the fallout of the Turner and Nist divorce, attention will soon turn to The Golden Bachelorette. It was announced earlier this month that Joan Vassos would be the one handing out the golden roses in the upcoming spin-off.
Vassos was one of the contestants looking for love with Turner during the inaugural season of The Golden Bachelor. However, she had to unexpectedly leave the show in Week 3 to take care of her daughter after a medical emergency.
The Golden Bachelorette is scheduled to air on ABC this fall.
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