The husbands, usually dressed in suits as they leave for work or take business calls, appear fleetingly in the first episode.
For some of the housewives, their lifestyle is made entirely possible through the salaries of their spouses.
Loderick-Peace, whose husband is the former chairman and owner of West Bromwich Albion football club, says that’s not the full picture. “Behind every successful man there’s a strong woman and men can’t do it on their own,” she says.
Parker reveals her mother-in-law wanted her son to marry a woman who also worked. “My husband said, ‘Why would I do that if I have a woman that’s going to be making my home amazing, treating me like a king and making sure there’s no stress when I come back from work?'” she says.
Some critics claim the Real Housewives franchise is inherently anti-feminist – an exercise in pitting women against each other for entertainment.
But the cast push back on that narrative. As well as the heightened drama we see on screen, the friendships, mentoring and mutual support have emerged, they say, and continued after the cameras stopped rolling.
The Real Housewives of London is available to watch on Hayu from 18 August.