BRAVO'S "THE REAL HOUSEWIVES OF NEW YORK CITY" GETS A FACE LIFT WHEN THREE NEW LADIES JOIN THE CAST, PREMIERING MONDAY, JUNE 4

Season Five Welcomes Aviva Drescher, Carole Radziwill And Heather Thomson

NEW YORK - April 5, 2012 - The city that never sleeps is about to get a real wake up call, as Bravo unveils the new cast of "The Real Housewives of New York City" season five, which premieres with a 90-minute super-sized episode on Monday, June 4 at 9pm ET/PT. Countess LuAnn de Lesseps, Sonja Morgan and Ramona Singer welcome Aviva Drescher, Carole Radziwill and Heather Thomson as they navigate their hectic lifestyles of jam-packed social calendars, careers, children and city living. For a sneak peek at the series, visit www.bravotv.com/the-real-housewives-of-new-york-city/season-5/videos/backstabbers-blackmails-and-orgasms

Meet the new ladies...

· Aviva Drescher is the first and only New York City born and bred "Housewife" in the history of the show. At 5'10 with brains to match her beauty, this part-time socialite and full-time mother will let nothing hold her back. When Aviva was just six years-old, she was in a tragic farm accident, which resulted in the amputation of her left leg. Aviva has never let this tragedy define who she is. Aviva received a B.A. degree from Vassar College, a Masters degree in French from New York University and her law degree from The Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. Instead of practicing law, she devotes her time to her Investment Banker husband Reid and raising their family of four children on the Upper East Side. Aviva continually teaches her family the importance of giving back through her philanthropic work as the National Spokesperson for One Step Ahead, an organization for amputees and as an Advisory Board Member of Cancer Schmancer/Trash Cancer and for her work with the Live4Life Foundation.

· Carole Radziwill - Best-selling author and journalist Carole Radziwill grew up in upstate New York and attended school at Hunter College and NYU, where she earned B.A. and MBA degrees, respectively. She enjoyed a long award-winning career in journalism at ABC News with Peter Jennings' documentary unit and at PrimeTime Live and 20/20, which garnered her three EMMYs(R), a Robert F. Kennedy Humanitarian award, and a GLADD award. Carole left ABC News in 2003 to write her first book entitled What Remains: A Memoir of Fate, Friendship and Love, a moving account of her life, her marriage to fellow ABC News Producer Anthony Radziwill, and their heartbreaking battle with cancer. It spent over 12 weeks on the New York Times Bestseller List and was nominated for the "Books for a Better Life" award. Carole is a frequent contributor to Glamour magazine and is finishing her first novel, a fictionalized sequel to her memoir titled Widow's Guide to Sex and Dating. She lives in the West Village with Margaret, her dog.

· Heather Thomson - A savvy and highly successful businesswoman, Heather Thomson is the creator of Yummie by Heather Thomson, a popular and innovative shapewear line. Fifteen years as a successful designer and stylist, she's worked with some of the biggest names in entertainment, including Jennifer Lopez, Beyoncé and Tina Knowles and Sean "Diddy" Combs. She was the founding Design Director for his Sean John line, and is credited as a major force behind multiple CFDA award nominations. A married mother of two - Jax, 6, and Ella Rae, 4, the idea for Yummie by Heather Thomson was born shortly after having her children and disappointed by existing shapewear. In addition to her professional work, Heather supports several charitable initiatives including Kellner Family Pediatric Liver Disease Foundation and City of Hope.

In the season five premiere, Sonja kicks things off with a party to mingle with Aviva, Carole and Heather. They all seem to hit it off ...until Ramona arrives. And as they say, with new friends come new revelations -- in this case, Aviva learns that a couple of her "new" friends have had relations with her ex-husband. Meanwhile, Heather and Carole try to figure out who to trust and not. Picking up right where they left off, LuAnn is still annoyed with Ramona about the disparaging comments she made last season about LuAnn's parenting. Things get interesting as Sonja, Ramona, Heather, and Aviva head to the Hamptons for the weekend and once back in the city, LuAnn surprises the new ladies with a shocking story. The three new women agree to never become "mean girls."

"The Real Housewives of New York City" is produced by Shed Media U.S. - Jennifer O'Connell, Nick Emmerson and Omid Kahangi serve as executive producers.

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