The Real Housewives of Auckland to debut on Bravo later this month

The Auckland version of the The Real Housewives will premiere on Monday, August 22, on Bravo and TV3.

It's been touted as the television event of the year and now we can reveal just when and where The Real Housewives of Auckland will make its television debut.

The local version of the international franchise will premiere on Monday, August 22, on Bravo and TV3.

The debut episode will be simulcast across both channels in an attempt to win over viewers who have yet to discover the new channel, which replaced FOUR last month.

All remaining episodes will screen exclusively on Bravo, which is a joint venture between MediaWorks and NBCUniversal.

Both networks will be hoping for a ratings win from the series, the first local production for the channel.

So far, Bravo has failed to build on FOUR's audience numbers, with a schedule comprised of several reality re-runs, including early episodes of Keeping Up with the Kardashians.

Nielsen figures show the average weekly audience during peak hours has dropped about 30 per cent. Interestingly, viewer numbers for off-peak viewing have increased by about 25 per cent.

Bravo wouldn't comment on the network's performance, instead pointing to their online engagement, which is more than double that of FOUR during the same month last year.

It's understood several other local reality franchises are under consideration, including Million Dollar Listing. However, any further investment will be dependent on the success of Housewives.

Insiders are confident Kiwis will be charmed by the cast, with several picking Anne Batley Burton - aka the "Champagne Lady" - as the breakout star of the show.

In addition to importing French wine and Champagne, she is a well-known animal advocate, who founded the NZ Cat Foundation to care for stray cats.