Oprah Winfrey’s bitter stepmother has unloaded on the talk show queen, painting her as a cold-hearted control freak who is kicking her out of her own home.
Barbara Winfrey — ex-wife of Oprah’s dad, Vernon Winfrey — took shots at the media titan’s relationships with boyfriend Stedman Graham and best friend Gayle King. Barbara said Oprah and Stedman are not in love and treat their relationship as a business deal.
The stepmom, married to Vernon for 14 years until he was caught cheating with a prostitute called “One Tooth,” described Oprah’s relationship with King as “bizarre” and “unhealthy.”
Barbara even tells the Daily Mail the talk show icon isn’t comfortable in her own skin, recalling a visit she and Vernon paid to her Chicago condo. “Oprah got onto the intercom and announced, ‘Negroes in the house. Negroes in the house’ . . . She thought it was funny,” Barbara recalled. “I thought it was insulting. I’m older than her. I know what it means. She was reminding us of our low class.”
Barbara does have a large ax to grind: Earlier this month, she was served with an eviction notice for her $1 million house near Nashville, Tenn. She claims Oprah had called her and said, “You have until Monday to get out of MY house.”
Oprah bought Vernon and Barbara the house shortly after they married. Barbara complained, “Her brand is that she is a nice, caring, generous, giving person. That’s not how it is. She is controlling — it’s all about control … She has confidentiality agreements with pretty much everybody in her life. She has them sign their life away and she has them in her pocket.”
A spokesperson for Oprah said Barbara was offered another home in her 2012 divorce, “and she chose not to accept it. The next offer was to sell the residence [she now lives in] and split the proceeds equally, which she also turned down. After several requests to voluntarily vacate the property … paperwork has been filed to have her vacate. A 60-day extension has been granted.” The rep declined to discuss Barbara’s other claims.