The Golden Bachelorette's Fall 2024 premiere date has been set!
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ABC has announced the official premiere date of Joan Vassos' The Golden Bachelorette season.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
The Golden Bachelorette's inaugural season will premiere Wednesday, September 18 at 8PM ET/PT on ABC, and all broadcasts will be available for streaming on Hulu the next day.
Joan was unveiled as the first-ever The Golden Bachelorette star in May.
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The 61-year-old mother and grandmother from Rockland, MD, had quit Gerry Turner's season of The Golden Bachelor, which wrapped in November 2023 on ABC, a couple of weeks into filming last year to help her daughter recover from postpartum depression at home.
"I so thought that I was going to be that girl who left that nobody remembers. I truly believed that was going to be the outcome," Joan told Entertainment Tonight, reflecting back on her early The Golden Bachelor departure.
"I really was sad about that, honestly, because I loved being here. I think the process worked. I was sad when I had to leave, so having the opportunity to come back and [having] people actually remember me a little bit [is amazing]."
On The Golden Bachelor: The Women Tell All late last year, Joan got emotional when watching her journey back on the show, and she told host Jesse Palmer how she felt really bad about disappointing and hurting Gerry.
Joan apparently thought she and Gerry had "a good chance" of working out as a couple had she stayed.
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Joan had said a part of her even wondered if Gerry was going to leave the show and chase her down in order to be with her. (Gerry ended up getting engaged and married to his The Golden Bachelor winner, Theresa Nist, but the pair split in April and have since finalized their divorce).
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
Joan told The Wrap in November 2023 that, after leaving Gerry during Week 2 of The Golden Bachelor season, she briefly considered returning to the show and resuming filming once she helped her daughter because she felt like she had "unfinished business."
However, Joan soon came to realize that her daughter's mental health was still suffering after giving birth and she needed to stay by her side.
ABC previously teased that Joan will bring "grace and charm" to viewers' television screens on Wednesday nights this fall.
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"She is a remarkable woman whose life has been defined by her resilience, zest for adventure and strong family values. It was those family values that led to her heartbreaking decision to leave The Golden Bachelor," ABC wrote in a press release for the show.
"Despite that and other challenges she's faced along the way... [Joan] remains an embodiment of strength and grace as a devoted mother of four, grandmother of two, and school administrator, while finding solace in the music of Elton John, spending time with her dog, and cooking."
Joan told ET that going into filming for The Golden Bachelorette, she was looking for a family man, a gentleman, and someone who is very polite, charming, endearing and adventurous.
Joan admitted she had "planned on" having all those adventures with her late husband, John Vassos, but he passed away from cancer at age 59 in 2021.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
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"When all of that kind of vanished, I really missed that thought and planning a future with somebody and doing new things... So I am ready for someone who has a little sense of adventure and is ready to have some fun," Joan said.
Joan added, "You only get to do this once. You only get to live once!"
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