Riviera Life News Archive 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Côte d'Azur's New Generation of Style  Concierge.com 28 Sep 09 After my visit to La Réserve Ramatuelle, outside St-Tropez, I decided to check out some other grande dame hotels in the South of France that have been recently refurbished to the tune of millions of euros. The first stop was the storied Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, In nearby Monaco, the Monte Carlo Beach hotel got a similar revamp in time for summer thanks to India Mahdavi, the talented interior designer. Ondine Cohane.

Unique exhibition to celebrate Brigitte Bardot's 75th birthday  France 24.com  27 Sep 09 Brigitte Bardot, the screen goddess who became a symbol of feminism and sexual liberation, turns 75 on Monday with her native France again honouring her with a first exhibition in Paris on her life. Now a virtual recluse who walks on crutches because of arthritis, Bardot will neither attend the Tuesday launch of "Brigitte Bardot: The Carefree Years" -- nor appear on camera. AFP.

Video Campaign to ban trade of bluefin tuna: interview with Prince Albert II of Monaco  Channel 4 News / ITN 21 Sep 09 Exclusive interview with Prince Albert II of Monaco for Channel 4 News on his support for the campaign to ban trade of bluefin tuna. A rift has developed in Europe over plans to have the fish listed as an endangered species. Attempting to broker the deal is the tiny Mediterranean state of Monaco. It was Prince Albert who first proposed the ban

My hols: Michael Caine  Times Online 20 Sep 09 I fell in love with the French Riviera in 1962, and it’s a love affair that has lasted the rest of my life. I’ve been all over the world and, apart from my home, it’s the place I look forward to returning to with a passion. That first time was with Terence Stamp. We shared a flat together in London, as two struggling actors. But he’d done a film, Billy Budd, with Peter Ustinov, who was then one of our biggest stars and owned a place near Nice.

Video South of France sees worst floods in 50 years  France 24 20 Sep 09 Officials in the south of France are assessing the damage caused by violent storms over the weekend that swept away hundreds of vehicles, forced dozens to evacuate their homes and caused extensive damage, in the worst flooding in the region in 50 years.

Video South of France hit by flash floods  Euronews 19 Sep 09 Overnight flash flooding caused widespread damage. While there were no reports of casualties, fire fighters were forced to evacuate dozens of people when rivers burst their banks in the south-east of France near the Cote d’Azur. Local residents described their shock at the sudden rise in water.

Chart topper Dame Vera Celebrates in Golfe Juan  Mail Online 13 Sep 09 Dame Vera, who is 92, celebrated with a meal of champagne and king prawns at the Nou Nou fish restaurant in Golfe-Juan on the Cote D'Azur in southern France. 'I plan to stay in the South of France for another couple of weeks and just relax and celebrate. 'It's not too hot and a lot of the tourists have gone so its very pleasant now. We have been coming here for years. Richard Simpson.

Princess Caroline 'to divorce third husband'  Daily Mail 11 Sep 09 Princess Caroline of Monaco appeared to be heading for the divorce courts today. The 52-year-old is effectively living a separate life from her husband of ten years, the colourful Prince Ernst of Hanover, 55. 'It looks like the end,' said a source at the respected French weekly magazine Point de Vue, which specialises in European royal families and breaks news of the split in its latest edition. Peter Allen.

Nicer than Nice  National Post 11 Sep 09 There's a Côte d'Azur town that has not been overtaken by glitz. It's called St- Raphaël, and it's a relaxed sort of place of about 36,000 people where the winters are pretty well always mild. For years, St- Raphaël was overlooked by guidebooks. Even now, its streets, from autumn until spring, aren't overflowing - the most notable absentees being North Americans. Kenneth Bagnell.

French couple jailed for 'poisoned cannelloni' murders  Telegraph.co.uk 11 Sep 09 The sentences was less than the 30 years asked for by the public prosecutor, and relatives of the murdered children, eight-year-old Melissa and seven-year-old Jason, reacted angrily in court. "Die, die in prison!" the children's aunt shouted at Martinez, who collapsed in tears when the sentence was read out in the southern town of Aix-en-Provence.

Controversies, Plastic Surgery Secrets, and Sexy Housewives on the French Riviera  American Health & Beauty 03 Sep 09 Aesthetic doctors and providers gathered in Nice, France, September 10-12 for the 5-Continent Congress for Lasers and Aesthetic Medicine. Gretchen Rossi from Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Orange County" will be following the conference closely.

Making "Exile on Main Street"  Rolling Stone 03 Sep 09 In the spring of 1971, the Rolling Stones learned that they were not only broke but would also have to leave England to avoid paying British income tax. They decamped to the French Riviera where all forms of aberrant behavior had always been tolerated so long as the bill was always paid on time -- and began recording their new album in the basement of Villa Nellcôte, Keith Richards' sumptuous mansion by the sea. The result was the Stones' only double album, the classic "Exile on Main Street." Robert Greenfield.

All the gossip from Cannes, with a few tears in the tales  Telegraph.co.uk 31 Aug 09 If you want to keep up to date on how the other half really lives on the Côte d'Azur, just tune into Riviera Radio, 106.5 FM. It's a long way off Terry Wogan and Radio 2, but it's just as homely and hilarious, whether intentionally or not. Hilary Alexander.

The first superstar novelist Somerset Maugham  Daily Mail 29 Aug 09 Somerset Maugham was well-placed to come up with his wonderful description of the French Riviera  -  'a sunny place for shady people'. The most louche of all the expatriates who congregated on the beautiful stretch of coast between Nice and Monaco before World War II, the prolific writer held court at his fabulous mansion, the Villa Mauresque, in glamorous Cap Ferrat. Glenys Roberts.

Police nab Internet 'fraud king' in Toulon  stuff.co.nz 29 Aug 09 A man known through Europe as the "fraud king" has been arrested in France for swindling as much as €500,000 out of tourists and other unsuspecting people through internet scams. Carlo Rao, 31, conned people out of their money by getting them to wire him payments for phony tourist apartments, vacations and other goods that he never provided. Rao was arrested in Toulon after he was traced to a Western Union office where he had gone to pick up his latest wire transfer. AP.

French rogue trader scandal inspires Nice comedy  France 24 27 Aug 09 A French Riviera theatre is putting on a play based on the rogue trading scandal at Societe Generale bank to mark one year since the onset of the global financial crisis. "Le Roman d'un trader" (Story of a Trader), a comedy loosely based on the  multi-billion euro losses blamed on SocGen trader Jerome Kerviel in 2008, will run at the Nice theatre for three weeks from September 23. AFP.

St Tropez Oil Pollution On Beach Riviera Radio 27 Aug 09 Beaches from St Tropez to Hyères have been hit by an oil spill. The pollution stretches from the world famous Pampelonne beach, Ramatuelle, past Cavalaire and Le Lavandou to Hyères. It is believed the pollution has been caused by a fuel spill from a passing ship.

Video French find more ETA arms  Euronews 26 Aug 08 Another cache of buried weapons linked to the Basque separatist group ETA is dug up by French police. Thirteen such discoveries have been made in the space of a week, mostly in secluded rural areas in southern France — explosives, detonators, ready-to-use bombs, firearms and ammunition.

France to claim exclusive Mediterranean fishing zone  Yahoo! 24 Aug 09 France says it intends to assert sovereign rights over marine resources off its Mediterranean coast, declaring a 70-mile Exclusive Economic Zone in a bid to protect dwindling fish stocks. French Environment Minister Jean-Louis Borloo made the announcement during a trip to southern France, saying he hoped that other Mediterranean nations would follow suit to prevent overfishing by fleets from outside the region. AFP.

Five killed in light aircraft crash near French Riviera  AFP 23 Aug 09 Five people including two children were killed on Sunday when their light aircraft crashed into a hill inland from the French Riviera and burst into flames. The airplane, thought to have taken off from Cannes, crashed on a wooded hill just outside a residential area in Callas, near the southeastern city of Draguignan, just before 10:00 am (0800 GMT), killing all five people on board.

Two French teens killed in Las Vegas bus crash  Seattle Times 23 Aug 09 Two French teenagers have been killed in an auto accident in the Las Vegas area. The victims were on an organized tour and were from the French port city of Marseilles and the French region of Seine-et-Marne. AP.

Video Fed-up French farmers target foreign foods  Euronews 22 Aug 09 Dozens of French farmers have been protesting over the presence of foreign foods in local supermarkets. A number of stores in the south, near Marseille, were targeted by angry demonstrators who claim that locally produced goods are never flavour of the month.

Friendly win for Leinster against Nice  Irish Times 22 Aug 09 Leinster opened their pre-season campaign with an impressive 38-10 victory over Rugby Nice Cote d’Azur in the Stade des Arboras last night. The hosts scored first through a fifth-minute penalty, but Leinster winger Simon Keogh scored a try seven minutes later.

Saint-Tropez mayor fights to bring back the glamour  Telegraph.co.uk 21 Aug 09 The little fishing port that swept to glamourdom in the 1950s thanks to Brigitte Bardot is concerned that an invasion of tacky, stetson-wearing "chavs" is frightening away wealthier, more exclusive customers and turning it into a French Ibiza. And they have elected a new mayor they hope will temper the town's showy excesses, stem encroaching tack, and keep "attracting a quality clientele". Henry Samuel.

Video Ryanair Ditch Manchester-Marseille  Irish Independent 21 Aug 09 Last week, Ryanair scrapped nine out of ten routes at Manchester airport, the UK's fourth largest airport. The decision will take effect in October. The flights will shift to East Midlands, Leeds Bradford and Liverpool airports, which charge lower landing fees per passenger. John Mulligan.

Russians return to Riviera  Russiatoday.ru 21 Aug 09 Promising Russian musicians have followed in the footsteps of Irish rockers “U2”, who impressed the public in 2007 by choosing to perform live on the red carpet of the Festival’s Palace at Cannes. Their gig is part of the programme for the "Young Russian Culture " festival highlighting young Russian talent in the South of France. The event will be followed by the large-scale annual festival of Russian culture that takes place on the French Riviera each August.

Video Interview French Jonny Wilkinson 'feels good' after Toulon debut against Stade Francais  Telegraph.co.uk 15 Aug 09 Jonny Wilkinson was content with his own performance in his debut in French rugby as he scored 17 points from the boot for new club Toulon but was ultimately frustrated that his efforts only earned a 22-22 draw with Stade Francais in the season's Top 14 opener. Steve Wilson.Video Jonny's 1st points for Toulon

Cultural treasure behind Riviera bling  Irish Times 14 Aug 09 As a part-time resident of Liguria, I like to keep my beady eye on the goings-on of my glitzier neighbours across the border and so it was with great interest that I came to read Julian Hale’s The French Riviera: A Cultural History . This is the latest from the Landscape of the Imagination series by Signal Books, a small, independent, and, if this little gem is anything to go by, extremely worthy British press. Christine Dwyer Hickey.

Jihad bling bling  Asia Times 14 Aug 09 Crisis? What crisis? As much as France remains the number-one destination for mass tourism in the world, St Tropez remains the most coveted spot in the world for jihad bling bling. Forget the Dubai oven with its "artificial islands". Forget the faded California dream. Exclusive St Barth in the Caribbean is too much under the radar. This is not about a Baudelaire remix of luxury, calm and voluptuousness. If we're talking over-the-wall brash and flash, St Tropez is the genuine (gleaming) article. Pepe Escobar.

Jonny all set for his Toulon test  Daily Mail 14 Aug 09 Jonny Wilkinson and his fellow English exiles will be pitched into the ferocious world of French club rugby tonight, having already embraced everything from an alien playing style to the hot weather. The 30-year-old World Cup-winning fly-half is due to start for Toulon in their home match against Stade Francais, which marks the beginning of the Top 14 league season. Chris Foy.

Corsica Teen 'Slaughters Family With Rifle'  Yahoo! 13 Aug 09 A 16-year-old boy killed his father, mother and younger twin brothers with a hunting rifle in Corsica, police have said. The teenager allegedly opened fire on his family at their home near Ajaccio, the capital of the French Mediterranean island. But a motive for the slaughter - the victims of which were said to have been in their beds at the time - is not known. Sky News.

Jerry Seinfeld takes 'Ref' to Mipcom  Variety 12 Aug 09 Jerry Seinfeld will attend this fall's Mipcom sales mart, where he and "The Marriage Ref" collaborator Ellen Rakieten are to introduce the new comedy-reality skein to international buyers. The comedian is to perform at a Mipcom event organized by Endemol, the global production powerhouse that is distributing "The Marriage Ref" outside the U.S. and making local versions of the show. Steve Clarke.

Woman drowns kids in bath in Nice  News24.com 12 Aug 09 A woman has confessed to drowning her two children in the bathtub of her family flat in the French Riviera resort of Nice, prosecutors said on Wednesday. The 39-year-old told police she had killed her son Teddy, three, and her two-year-old daughter Lisa to "protect them from threats by the mafia", prosecutor Olivier Caracotch said. AFP.

French Top 14 Toulon cool Wilkinson expectations  Yahoo! 12 Aug 09 World Cup winner Jonny Wilkinson, the latest high-profile foreign recruit to sign a lucrative French Top 14 deal, could make his debut for Toulon on Friday with the big-spending club eager to cool expectations of the fly-half. The injury-plagued 30-year-old should face Stade Francais in Paris, but coach Philippe Saint-Andre, the former French international winger, wants fans to realise that Wilkinson is ring-rusty. AFP.

It Takes a Wealthy Man to Raise a French Village  New York Times 11 Aug 09 The Marquis de Sade once lived here, a stunning town built of café-au-lait-colored stone, holding the heights across the Luberon River valley. Pierre Cardin, 87, seems an odd inheritor. But after he bought the ruins of the castle nine years ago and then established a summer music festival here, some of the 450 residents of Lacoste, began to treat him like a hated nobleman. Steven Erlanger.

H1N1 hits foreign teens at French summer school  SABC 10 Aug 09 Dozens of foreign teenagers and adults have been diagnosed with H1N1 swine flu at a language school in Cap d'Ail in southern France. Five adults and 59 teenagers at the  Centre Mediterraneen Linguistique summer school showed flu-like symptoms, and 10 of them were tested first for influenza A in general, then for the H1N1 swine flu virus specifically. Reuters.

Riviera rich fly into storm over ‘helicopter hell'  Sunday Times 09 Aug 09 French aircraft carrier could be “reborn” as a landing pad for the helicopters of the rich and famous if inhabitants of Saint-Tropez get their way. The Jeanne d’Arc is being retired from service next year but the glamorous port on the Riviera would like the 13,000-ton ship to be anchored off the coast as a floating helipad, hotel and restaurant. Matthew Campbell.

Video Burst pipeline threatens Southern French nature reserve Euronews 08 Aug 09 A burst underground pipeline in Southern France has gushed oil into a nature reserve on the edge of the world famous Carmargue national park. More than 4,000 cubic metres of crude has spilled over two hectares of the Coussouls de Crau reserve – the regional fire brigade is trying to limit the pollution and a section of the pipeline has been shut off.

Video Nice beach owner becomes internet novelty dance sensation  Riviera Radio 07 Aug 09 In Nice, a local beach owner has become a surprise internet sensation, after he posted a novelty dance video. Ali, the director of the Castel Plage, has created La Nage-Danse, complete with music and lyrics, recorded on the beach and featuring friends and clients doing a swimming-style dance routine.

Ceremony Hails Veterans Of the 'Other' D-Day  Washington Post 06 Aug 09 On Wednesday, Pratt and 30 other World War II veterans from across the country were honored at Arlington National Cemetery in one of the first formal U.S. ceremonies recognizing Operation Dragoon, the invasion of southern France on Aug. 15, 1944. Katie Balestra.

Video Campsites evacuated as wild fires threaten campers on French Riviera  Telegraph.co.uk 04 Aug 09 Campers were ordered to leave three campsites as the flames fanned by strong winds came within half a mile of their tents, engulfing them in smoke and ash at Le Muy in the Var department of southeastern France, near Saint-Tropez.

Lucky escape as one of Scotland's richest men walks away from helicopter crash  The Scotsman 04 Aug 09 The helicopter had taken off from the Lady Christine, Lord Laidlaw's luxury yacht, which has been moored near the island, in Maine's Penobscot Bay, for the past week. The Monaco-based tax exile – who is believed to be worth more than £800 million and has given more than £6m to the Conservative Party – had been the talk of the area after the arrival of the 180ft yacht. Brian Ferguson.

Pics He's a joker, he's a smoker... but he's still Jack the lad  The Independent 04 Aug 09 Jack Nicholson was seen shaking his stuff on a dance-floor late into the night with a much younger companion at a private party in the home of a Belgian socialite on the French Riviera over the weekend. The following day the star was spotted having lunch with former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman, before heading to the beach.

Design Hotels add new Saint-Tropez hotel to portfolio  Breakingtravelnews.com 04 Aug 09 The newly opened KUBE Hotel, Saint-Tropez, the French Riviera counterpart to the celebrated KUBE Hotel Paris, is a lush Mediterranean refuge by day and a glitzy playground by night. With its Côte d’Azur debut, the KUBE makes a bold statement in Saint-Tropez through modern architecture and contrasting cubist elements. Press Release.

Breast practice on the riviera  BBC.co.uk 04 Aug 09 There was a time when French beaches were full of topless women - but no longer. As cities empty, and France makes its annual migration to the coast, Paris-based journalist Regan Kramer - a member of the feminist Les Chiennes de Garde group - asks why the breast is now back in the bikini.

Food glorious food, at Club Med Opio  Stuff.co.nz 04 Aug 09 Indulgence, after all, was the theme of my break at Club Med's Opio en Provence, in the south of France. By the time we arrived at Club Med we were perched high enough on the Valbonne plateau to enjoy a spectacular view of the chiselled landscape littered with terracotta houses. Jessica Marszalek / AAP.

Passengers on flu-ship disembark in France  Gulf Times 02 Aug 09 The Voyager Of The Seas cruise ship, carrying some 5,000 passengers and crew, had been sailing in the Mediterranean as part of a 7-day tour. It docked in the French port city of Marseilles on Friday and there were contradictory reports about whether the possible flu victims had the H1N1 strain, or more common flu symptoms. Reuters.

Hard hit tourists shun France this summer, bookings down 30 percent  DailyStar.com.lb  01 Aug 09 Cash-strapped foreign tourists are snubbing France this summer, with hotel bookings dropping nearly 30 percent in June and July, Tourism Minister Herve Novelli said Friday. The French Riviera is losing its once-loyal Russian and British clientele but many domestic travelers have taken advantage of last-minute deals. AFP.

French fields of dreams for Wales star Robinson  Wales Online 01 Aug 09 Life with Jonny Wilkinson has simply blown Jamie Robinson away. The Wales centre – who left the Blues after a decade at the Arms Park to join big-spending Toulon in the south of France – is now rubbing shoulders with some of rugby union’s superstars. Simon Roberts.

Vacation chaos cramps drivers across France  Gulf Times 02 Aug 09 Millions of French drivers faced travel misery yesterday as the great holiday getaway led to traffic jams hundreds of kilometres long across the country. Around 5mn motorists got behind the wheel to start their holidays on one of the busiest weekends of the year on France’s roads.  But more than 550km of tailbacks formed, with major jams occurring mainly on motorways in the south. AFP.

Riviera Life News Archive 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1