Alex McCord from 'The Real Housewives of New York City' at home in Brooklyn, New York. (Marie-Joelle Parent/QMI Agency)

New York – "To a certain group of people, status is everything," says Alex McCord in the opening credits to The Real Housewives of New York City. As the third season of the hit series starts broadcasting in Canada, she invited us to her house in Brooklyn.

Despite what you may see on the screen, the mother of two children keeps both feet on the ground. "We didn’t come up with a cure for cancer, we're on a reality TV show. Drama about social hierarchy is a little silly."

The Real Housewives franchise (DC, Orange County, New Jersey and New York) has become a phenomenon in the United States. The escapades of these women fill the pages of gossip magazines, Page Six, New York magazine and even the New York Times.

Alex McCord has her own theory on the subject. "Never underestimate how crazy people can be," she says. "For decades people loved soap operas, and now that a lot of them are being cancelled, the whole Real Housewives franchise kind of replaced that."

McCord, 36, greets me in her freshly renovated house in the Cobble Hill neighbourhood of Brooklyn, a house where fans often stop to take pictures. While she finished her makeup and hair in the kitchen, I was given a tour of the premises. The decor is rather baroque and theatrical, with red and black tones, thick curtains and a large painting of Alice Cooper.

McCord is the only one of the "housewives" who lives in Brooklyn, which puts her in her own category. In one episode, you can see the disdain of some of the women when they have to venture to the area to attend her housewarming party.

What also makes her different is the ubiquity of her husband, Simon van Kempen, on-screen. They are undoubtedly the most eclectic couple of the series. They raise their children, Francois and Johan, partly in French. Neither one of them, however, speaks the language. Other mini-scandals that have rocked their lives since the beginning of the series include a neighbour who had been blogging about their daily life and who posted nude photos of Alex on the web. Nothing, however, seems to rattle the McCord van Kempens.

Previously on the show, McCord was portrayed as the woman who got walked all over. In the third season, she asserts, "I got fed up. I got angry. I couldn't take it anymore. In the first two seasons, I was a little bit too easily directed. Now, I'm more confident to express my opinion. I had to learn that in real life, if someone offend your sensibilities, you can just walk away. But if you are contracted to be on a show, you are going to continue to see them again. You'll see in the third season. I'll have clashes with people," she confides.

Watching the show, it often feels that the lives of these women is a continuous petty war of words. Some scenes play straight from the movie Mean Girls. In short, it is far from the complicity of the characters on Sex and the City.

"I didn’t really like most of the cast in the beginning," Alex confesses. "We don’t all love each other, but we respect each other." None of the women knew each other before starting the series.

She is also aware that the show is not a true representation of New York. "Do these women represent New York? No, absolutely not, but there is always a Jill, a Ramona, a Bettheny or a Kelly at parties."

Growing up between Washington DC, Texas, Kansas and the Virgin Islands, Alex McCord never thought of becoming a reality TV star. She was an actress for 10 years and stopped everything after the arrival of her second child. So how does she now balance her social life, family, careers and shoot days?

"Luckily enough, I work from home (as a graphic designer and creative director). I have a part-time nanny. I would say to women, think about the things you hate to do. I hate cleaning the house, therefore I have a housekeeper. I love cooking, so I cook myself. I structure my working day so I can take the kids to school every morning. Simon and I also decided to only go out two nights a week," she says.

As our conversation draws to a close, I dare to ask the ultimate question: Is she or is she not a "socialite"?

"That makes my hair stand on end," she answers. "I grew up being told very clearly socialite wasn’t even a word. When we shot the first season, Simon and I did not expect there would be this whole social slant to the series. It made me angry that some of the ladies would call themselves socialites. They are not. Miss Du Pont, Miss Kissinger were. No one on our show ever has been, ever will be." The message is clear.

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The Real Housewives of New York III, 10pm ET/11pm PT starting September 11 on Slice.

Alex finds time to keep up with her blog (www.mccordvankempen.com/blog) and her Twitter page (McCordAlex).

http://mccordvankempen.com/blog/

"Little Kids, Big City", Alex and Simon van Kempen’s book on raising children in New York City is out now (Sterling & Ross Publishers).

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