Lauren Conrad was ‘controlling over her friends’, Audrina Patridge claims

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Audrina Patridge has opened up about her relationship with Lauren Conrad, claiming thatThe Hills co-star was “controlling” over her friends.

The highs and lows of the pair’s rocky friendship were documented on the hit Noughties reality show, including the time Patridge accused Conrad of hooking up with her former beau, Justin Bobby Brescia.

In her new memoir, Choices: To the Hills and Back Again, published on Tuesday (26 July), Patridge said the pair are no longer friends, owing to “turmoil” that took place off-screen.

“There are reasons that she and I aren’t friends anymore, and there was a lot of turmoil between us that we couldn’t talk about on-camera at the time,” Patridge writes, as per an excerpt seen by Page Six.

“I found her to be very controlling over her friends. If you’re in her circle, you have to do and say what Lauren does or says. Otherwise, you’re on the outs,” Patridge claimed.

“To an extent, I understand wanting to have control, especially in the reality TV world Lauren grew up in, when so much is controlled and decided for you.”

Detailing some of the external factors that impacted their friendship, Patridge said she and Conrad had the same agents and publicists, but alleged that all requests, opportunities and gigs were being handed to Conrad instead of her.

“Yes, I blamed my agents for this, but it still wasn’t great for my friendship with Lauren,” she said.

The Independent has contacted Conrad’s representatives for comment.

Tensions between Patridge and Conrad culminated in episode 16, season four of The Hills when the pair met up to discuss the rumour that Conrad had hooked up with Brescia behind her friend’s back.

Conrad strongly denied the accusation.

Writing in her new book, Patridge claimed that she had reason to believe there was truth behind the rumour because Conrad was allegedly much friendlier towards him off-camera than she was on-screen.

“When Justin and I were broken up, Lauren ran into him in Vegas and, according to a good friend of mine, ended up hooking up with him,” Patridge claimed. “When I heard this, I felt so betrayed.”

Patridge also claimed that Conrad and Brescia both ignored her calls and texts during that time unless the cameras were rolling.

“Apparently Lauren was saving her take for the cameras, and when we finally talked, she had it all twisted around to make me sound like I was delusional and out of my mind,” she writes. “Then she got mad at me. Lauren and I were never really friends again.”

Also in the memoir, Patridge details feeling “humiliated” by Justin Timberlake at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards.