Photo courtesy of BravoTV ©
In season 4, Bethenny left for her own show and Cindy Barshop was added to the rest Real Housewives of New York City cast who returned from the 4th season; Alex McCord, Jill Zarin, Kelly Bensimon, LuAnn Delesseps, Ramona Singer and Sonja Morgan.
After ratings dropped precipitously for the second installment of the Reunion, Bravo decided to overhaul the cast reacting to what they perceived as a too ‘dark’ season. Despite this perception, ratings for Season 4 actually grew from Season 3 and that despite the loss of Frankel. Overall this 4th season closed out growing 1% over its prior one, and given the Morocco trip never reached the heights of the famous trip to St John, the fact that the 4th season’s ratings held up show’s the enduring attraction of the cast.
| Episode # | Time Aired | Date Aired | Episode Name | Total Audience | 18-49 Demo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S04E01 | 10:00 PM | 7-Apr-11 | Grin and Bare It | 1,965,000 | 1.00 | S04E02 | 10:00 PM | 14-Apr-11 | March Madness | 1,856,000 | 0.90 | S04E03 | 10:00 PM | 21-Apr-11 | Hairy Mess | 1,927,000 | 0.90 | S04E04 | 10:00 PM | 28-Apr-11 | Ramona’d | 1,866,000 | 0.90 | S04E05 | 10:00 PM | 5-May-11 | Following Pecking Orders | 1,828,000 | 0.90 | S04E06 | 10:00 PM | 12-May-11 | A Mask For Two Faces | 1,792,000 | 0.80 | S04E07 | 10:00 PM | 19-May-11 | Travel Reservations | 1,795,000 | 0.80 | S04E08 | 10:00 PM | 26-May-11 | Misfortune Teller | 2,292,000 | 1.10 | S04E09 | 10:00 PM | 2-Jun-11 | A Riad Divided | 2,283,000 | 1.10 | S04E10 | 10:00 PM | 9-Jun-11 | Last Call, Morocco | 2,256,000 | 1.00 | S04E11 | 10:00 PM | 16-Jun-11 | Debt Becomes Her | 2,038,000 | 0.90 | S04E12 | 10:00 PM | 23-Jun-11 | 16 and Skip the Sweet | 2,142,000 | 0.90 | S04E13 | 10:00 PM | 30-Jun-11 | Your Tweeting Heart | 1,934,000 | 0.80 | S04E14 | 10:00 PM | 7-Jul-11 | Burlesque is More | 2,017,000 | 0.90 | S04E15 | 10:00 PM | 14-Jul-11 | Video Killed The Countess | 2,171,000 | 0.90 | S04E16 | 10:00 PM | 21-Jul-11 | L.O.V.E. Duel | 2,449,000 | 1.10 | S04E17 | 10:00 PM | 25-Jul-11 | Reunion Part 1 | 2,325,000 | 1.10 | S04E18 | 10:00 PM | 1-Aug-11 | Reunion Part 2 | 1,781,000 | 0.70 | Average Season 4 | 2,039,833 | 0.93 | Average S4 Excl. Reunion | 2,038,188 | 0.93 | Average Season 3 | S4 v. S3 | +1% | 2,019,889 | 1.02 | Average Season 2 | S4 v. S2 | +22% | 1,670,000 | Average Season 1 | S4 v. S1 | +82% | 1,119,222 |
Source: Nielsen Media Research via TVByTheNumbers