Forget earlier denials — Bethenny Frankel IS going back to ‘Real Housewives’

Here’s the real “skinny” on “Skinnygirl” brand queen Bethenny Frankel: Despite very strong denials — likely simply a big fib — the TV personality and reality show veteran is indeed going to be returning to the ensemble on “The Real Housewives of New York City, the show that made her famous.

In a release issued Monday, Frankel — who left the show in 2010 after three seasons — announced she is “genuinely excited, with a side of slightly nervous, for my return to ‘The Real Housewives of New York City.’ Bravo has always been the place on television where I have the freedom to be unfiltered, honest and inappropriate, with an audience who has been with me from the beginning.”

Most recently, on Oct. 1 Frankel had denied she was returning to the show, and requests for comments about this possibly happening — from this columnist and other media outlets were similarly denied.

Frankel’s return is seen as a move to revive the reality show. It comes in the wake of her having hosted her own short-lived “Bethenny” talk show, going through a nasty divorce, but also successfully launching her “Skinnygirl” line of diet and personal care and beauty products.