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When it was first announced as a new addition to the cast of The real housewives of Orange County in 2019, Braunwyn Windham-Burke didn’t look much different from the women who entered and exited the series in the previous 13 seasons. The hair, the physique, the name – it all looked like the classic Orange County. And yet, Windham-Burke turned out to be a wild child who immediately rocked the boat, kissing with castmate Tamra Judge and earning the scorn of RHOC OG Vicki Gunvalson.
Season 15 saw the departure of Judge and Gunvalson, and the arrival of a new Braunwyn. At the premiere of the October season, she announced that she was an alcoholic and, at the end of the season on Wednesday night, she turned out to be a lesbian in a confessional (she shared the news in a GLAAD interview in December that took place after the end of the filming of the season) Among these crucial moments, Windham-Burke protected itself in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic; participated in protests by the Black Lives Matter; sailed through an increasingly complicated 26-year marriage to her husband, Sean; It is really Housewives fashion – accused several women of lying.
With almost a year of sobriety and a series of headlines about his girlfriend, Wyndham-Burke talked to Vulture about one of the busiest second-year seasons in Real housewives story.
Suffice to say it was a great year for you. Looking back at where you were before you started shooting this season, could you have imagined ending up here?
My one-year sobriety date is January 30, in about two weeks. I keep thinking, what was I doing at that time last year? Because right before I got sober it wasn’t pretty. I do not think so. When I was on that ski slope and I said to my producer: “I am an alcoholic; let’s do this ”, I had no idea what I was really getting into. I had no idea how difficult it would be.
But it has been incredible and great, and there is a strength to live your truth and be authentic. There is an inner strength that I discovered that really helped me through difficult times.
At the beginning of sobriety it can be a very precarious period, and you were doing it in front of the camera. But there is also responsibility built into a reality show. Did filming make it easier or harder for you?
There were some difficult times. There was a party in Shannon [Beador’s] home from which I ran away. The film crew followed me back to my home. I had every intention of drinking that day when I left Shannon’s house. I tried to expel the camera crews. On the one hand, was it difficult to film this? Absolutely. The other side of the coin is that production stayed with me. They knew I was going to drink and they didn’t leave me, and they ended up taking me to one of my first AA meetings, which was beautiful.
Drinking has been a big part of Housewives universe for a while. When you joined the show, did that encourage you to drink more?
I think the aspect of the footage that people don’t realize is that we’re in a bubble. We are in a very safe bubble. We are surrounded by people who will take care of us; we know that we have a safe trip home. We’re kind of isolated when we’re filming. People don’t come to us. There was a sense of security and also a sense of, You can do whatever you want, and that’s okay. You order a bottle of tequila, it just appears magically, and there is no judgment because that is not the job of the production. They don’t judge us; they just film us, as it should be. So there was definitely a sense of i can do whatever i want. This was quickly replaced by many nights when I passed out.
In the end, Kelly [Dodd] said that sober Braunwyn is not the same person as drunken Braunwyn. Do you agree that you are a different person than you were in the first season of the show?
Absolutely. I think this season was very painful for me, very much. You were living my life with me in real time, being sober during those first months, so it was difficult. Who I am now, when I get close to a year, is nothing like I was a few years ago.
Does it upset people like Kelly? Yes absolutely yes. Often, when you start to improve, people take it as an insult. They look at their own choices. And it is a very common thing in sobriety that you lose friends, and the most critical people, for the most part, are those who do not want to look at their own behavior.
You said you anticipated that people would have this reaction that being sober was just a plot for the show. Knowing that this would prepare you for it and how did you manage to deal with that reaction?
I knew it was going to happen, and I knew exactly who the cast would come from. They are very critical, they are a little stingy and prefer to make cheap decisions to get their names out for five seconds than actually picking up the phone and calling me.
It is not false; it’s not a plot – find something else. This is very important for me and other people. I worked a lot. It’s been almost a year. I struggled for each of those days, sometimes literally sitting on my hands to keep from drinking.
Let’s talk about a more cheerful public revelation. O Housewives the franchise obviously has a huge LGBTQ + audience. Why do you think it took so long to see a real lesbian housewife?
I find it very easy to get stuck in our comfort zones. Much of the country is not doing well. I was telling my husband the other day, when I walk on the beach with [girlfriend] Kris, holding her hand, is still very different from holding Sean’s hand. There is still a lot of criticism and judgment. And I think a lot of people don’t want to be the first to rock the boat.
I wonder if you could talk about the moment of your GLAAD interview, which happened in the middle of the season, but after you finished filming.
TMZ had some pictures of me with my girlfriend, and they have a policy of not revealing people. So they came to Bravo PR and said, “We have these photos, but we are not going to show them off.” AND [Bravo PR] came up to me and said, “Okay, this is there; will go around. ”Because I was not hiding. Kris came out of the closet 12 years ago; I wasn’t going to push you back. How can we do this in the best way? And I really wanted to find a place that was respectful and that really told the story.
Was it difficult for me to say the first time? Yes. If you look at the GLAAD interview, you can see me. I am shaking. I am shaking throughout the video. But now that I’m on the other side of it, I’m shining, lighter and happier.
You became very frank politically last year. How did you end up – in this predominantly white and conservative city – protesting with Black Lives Matter?
We had [the murders of] Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd are so close, and here I am at home, I have nowhere to be, and for some reason that was a bright moment for me. I couldn’t hang up. I thought, I have to post it is. I had never posted anything on my Instagram that was controversial or annoying people. I have always kept my political views a secret. I didn’t want to rock the boat. But watching a man being murdered was like, I finished.
It just took off from there. How can I get involved? What can I do? [Activists] said: “You are a middle-aged white woman, just show up. Because your body can keep a person of color safe. You will not be beaten or arrested. ”And it is true, I was never beaten and I was never arrested.
You also talked to the women on the program about BLM, and why you were protesting. It seemed that some were more receptive than others. Did you find this experience enlightening?
Talking to Gina [Kirschenheiter was] incredible, and that’s what you want to happen. Do you want someone who – like me, like Ginny – didn’t really notice what’s going on, Okay, I get it; What can I do? I want to do what I can.
Talking to Kelly is like talking to a wall. It’s painful. Talking to emily [Simpson], like a wall. They are so ingrained in their white privilege that they can’t even see the other side of it. Kelly says, “Well, I’m a Mexican.” Well, you were given all the privileges of a white person. When you were arrested, you were released. This would not have happened if you were a black woman, let’s be honest.
When I go to the beach, I’m surrounded by Trump signs. So, was I surprised? No. Was I discouraged? Absolutely. Did that make me question why I live here and why I raise my kids here? Yes. I think Kelly and Emily are a good indication of how most people feel here.
Traditionally, Black Real Housewives have been the most outspoken about their policy and support for progressive causes. White housewives tend not to talk about these things. Do you see it changing?
The most experienced housewives, no, I don’t think they will say anything. I do not. I think they found their rhythm. They have their followers; they have something that works for them. But I definitely think you’re going to have some younger, more progressive housewives. This is the direction I have seen in other programs. And I hope that Orange county do it. There are many progressive young people here who want change. This exists, but not necessarily in our program.
Thinking about your future on the show, do you find yourself finding common ground with these women – and people in Orange County in general – who can be more critical of your policy or your identity?
If you voted for Trump, I will not find common ground with you. I do not want. I do not. If homophobia, sexism and racism are not impediments to you, I don’t want to meet you. I do not. We will never find common ground because – I’m sure we were all watching it last week. If you still support Trump after all of this, you are inherently broken.
As for the cast, we’ll see. Ginny looks great. Shannon and I will be fine. Kelly and I – no, I don’t think Kelly and I will ever get over it.
Everyone else, yes. This show has a way of going around and around like you’ve never seen it coming. I think any long-term viewer knows that there are friendships and relationships that you never thought possible.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.