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00:00Riviera, playground of the rich and famous, and one of the world's great dream destinations.
00:06This is paradise.
00:08And by taking a simple rail trip of just over 100 miles from end to end,
00:12you can see all its sun-drenched glories.
00:16And that's what I'm doing.
00:18Wow.
00:18It's luxury beyond all measure, and I've got the best seat in the house.
00:24As well as the rather nice sea, sand, and sun, I want to explore the region's rich past.
00:31We're sitting pretty much in the exact spot.
00:34And vibrant present.
00:35What a way to toast a new friendship.
00:37I'll discover the famous characters that made the Riviera glitter.
00:42You could say that they invented the Cotezio in the summertime.
00:45And I'll visit the places and meet the people that keep it shimmering today.
00:50Oh, I love this.
00:51What's not to like about my great Riviera rail trip?
01:02After all those little seaside towns, it'll be quite a shock to hit the big city.
01:07My rail trip has brought me to Nice, the unofficial capital of the Cote d'Azur and the fifth biggest city in France.
01:15I'm not a city person normally, but luckily this is one of my favourites, with yet another postcard pretty Old Town.
01:26Even the train station oozes Belle Époque charm.
01:37Back in the late 19th century, it was the final stop on the legendary Train Bleu that brought all those rich Brits from Calais down to the magical Riviera.
01:46This is not my first time in Nice, and you know one of the things I absolutely love about it?
01:54The ice creams are enormous.
01:56In fact, food's very much the thing in Nice.
02:04The Cours Salier market is one of the most iconic in a region renowned for its gastronomic delights.
02:10The truth is, when I finish filming, I am actually bringing all of my grandchildren and my children and their partners to Nice for holiday,
02:22and I have promised my eight-year-old grandson that he and I are going to go to the market, buy food, and make dinner for everybody.
02:30So I've just come to check it out, because I want to make sure I do it right.
02:33I want to be a good granny, so let's have a look.
02:34Yes, I want to ask you a question.
02:36Hello.
02:37Can I have a fruit?
02:38A fruit, of course.
02:40Come on, it's the fruit of Nisoa.
02:41Oh.
02:42Oh.
02:43Midi.
02:4412 o'clock.
02:45Miam, miam.
02:46I've got a cannon at the door.
02:49It's a 12 o'clock thing about me.
02:50Midi, it's l'heure du martini.
02:51Oh, very bien.
02:53It's a really good one.
02:55The cannon going off in the middle is, you know, heart-stopping.
03:00Come on, we add some berries.
03:03Monsieur.
03:04Merci.
03:05C'est moi qui vous remercie.
03:06I'm definitely coming back here.
03:08Look, free cherries and change.
03:10I mean, what's not to love?
03:15I can't wait to tuck into a lovely lunch at one of the many cafes that line the market.
03:20But first, I think I should learn a bit about the history of this wonderful city.
03:25So I'm off for a stroll along its famous Promenade des Anglais.
03:30Anglais because the English played a massive role in creating Nice and this promenade.
03:37American expat, local author and tour guide Jean Oliver can tell me more.
03:42Bonjour.
03:43When you said the blue chair, I didn't realize it was going to be so big.
03:45It's impossible to not find you.
03:47That's true.
03:48Why the blue chair?
03:49What's it about?
03:50Well, the blue chairs are an iconic feature of the Promenade des Anglais for the last century.
03:56People sit on their chairs, they discuss, they look at the sea.
04:00Philosophize, that's very French.
04:02Philosophize, exactly.
04:04So you say the Promenade des Anglais.
04:06I mean, this is the, it's like the heart of British life here, right?
04:10Oh, most certainly.
04:12We all wind up on the promenade sooner rather than later.
04:17And we're pretty grateful to the Brits for having built it at the beginning of the 19th century.
04:23Why did they?
04:24Well, the Brits started coming here for their health.
04:27It was the time of a lot of respiratory diseases.
04:31There was a lot of tuberculosis, wasn't there?
04:32Yes, a lot.
04:34For their health, they needed to stroll.
04:37They wanted to...
04:39Breathe?
04:40Breathe.
04:41They came in the winter and they wanted healthy air and so forth.
04:45But there wasn't a place for them to stroll.
04:49Right.
04:50The seaside was trees and mud and it was just unacceptable.
04:55All those long dresses, you've got the long dresses.
04:58That's right.
04:59Nice shoes, long dresses.
05:02So who built the promenade then?
05:03So the Brits eventually, in 1822, had congregated in a church community across the river.
05:12Now the Holy Trinity Church.
05:15And their minister, Lewis Way, started a subscription, a fundraising drive to build a little path for people to walk on.
05:27It was a way of helping the very, very poor people.
05:32It employed about 150 men, women and children to build it.
05:37It took a couple of years, but then it opened in 1824.
05:41And was it always the Promenade des Anglais or did it just gain that name?
05:46Well, it was initially called the English Pathway in Nice's local language, Chemin des Anglais.
05:52And then eventually it became the Chemin des Anglais.
05:57And eventually it became the Promenade des Anglais.
05:59It's like it gets fancier and fancier as it goes.
06:01Yes.
06:02Yeah.
06:03It started as a path, then a way, and then a promenade.
06:04Yes.
06:05Yes.
06:06I love that.
06:07That's very good.
06:08And so it started, it was really only two metres wide.
06:09It was a dusty path.
06:10And it was only 400 metres long.
06:12So...
06:13And now look at it.
06:14And now look at it.
06:15And now look at it.
06:16Incredible.
06:22Yes.
06:23And if I walk today, is it still the promenade of the British?
06:26Oh, it's the promenade I think of everybody now.
06:28Right.
06:29Okay.
06:30Yeah.
06:31Everybody loves it.
06:32There's still a big expat community of Americans and British, is that still a thing?
06:35Most certainly, yes.
06:37We socialise together quite a bit.
06:39There's many, many groups of Anglophones here, of British and American.
06:45And I think it's probably the largest community.
06:47Is it?
06:48Okay.
06:49And what drew you?
06:50Why did you decide?
06:51Well, it's so beautiful.
06:54It's nice mild winters, so it's easy to stay active all year round, which I really like.
07:02And I like also that it's not far from Italy, so if you get a little tired of France...
07:09Pop over for a pizza.
07:10Pop over to Ventimiglia, right, for a pizza.
07:22The person who played perhaps the most important role in popularising the Riviera with her fellow Anglais was Queen Victoria.
07:28She literally fell in love with the region, and the well-heeled Simier neighbourhood in particular.
07:35Simier sits on the hill overlooking the sea, and this statue pays tribute to the lady who first put it on the map.
07:43The nearby Excelsior Regina Hotel was built to accommodate her and the many monarchs and aristocrats who frequented these parts back in the day.
07:55It's been converted into private apartments, but I've been given a sneak peek of its opulent charms.
08:04Oh, my goodness.
08:07Ho, ho, ho, ho, ho, ho, ho.
08:12Bah!
08:13Did you hear that?
08:14That's the echo of money right there.
08:17This was the foyer of the hotel.
08:25I...
08:26I...
08:27I mean, it's quite nice, isn't it?
08:30Understated.
08:31It's...
08:32I'm going to be honest, it's very like my own entrance hall at home.
08:35You know, I like it.
08:36So important is Queen Victoria to the history of Nice that I felt I had to get another slice of local history from Jean, who made me have ice cream.
08:53Yeah.
08:56Merci.
08:57Look at that.
08:59So imagine Queen Victoria comes to town.
09:02Everybody goes, great, she needs to come to our place because it's good for business.
09:06Do you think that's right?
09:07Oh, most definitely.
09:08I mean, she got an amazing reception when she first came here in 1895 at the train station.
09:17The streets were lined with little girls with bouquets of flowers.
09:22There was a band playing God Save the Queen.
09:25The governor made his speech.
09:26I arrived by train.
09:27It wasn't...
09:28It wasn't quite like...
09:29It wasn't.
09:30I don't know what...
09:31Something's gone wrong.
09:32Something's different.
09:33Yeah.
09:34No.
09:35And because we have a sort of...
09:36The British have an image of her as being not amused and rather stiff and formal.
09:41Do you think she responded and was glad to see the people?
09:44Oh, most certainly.
09:45She had a very warm relationship with the people right from the beginning.
09:50One of her ladies-in-waiting commented that in the morning, she would be a 72-year-old woman.
09:57In the afternoon, when she went out and about, she was like a 17-year-old girl.
10:02I love that.
10:03She was enthused about everything.
10:05Her last journal entry in 1899 was so touching.
10:10She said, it's so sad to leave every year.
10:13She said, every year I grow fonder of dear Simier.
10:16Oh, that's so lovely.
10:18I think there's more to her than I had realised.
10:21Yeah, it was a place for her to relax and to have fun.
10:25She took a lot of trips outside of Nice.
10:29Well, she had a lot of relatives to visit on various thrones because nobility was coming to Nice at the time.
10:36Oh, there's a wonderful bit in her diary where she says she's on the road to Villefranche and she bumps into her cousin who's Leopold II of Belgium.
10:43Right.
10:44Oh, that's right.
10:45Oh, okay.
10:46Oh, there's another kid.
10:47Oh, hi, King.
10:48That's all right.
10:49I like that.
10:51She liked to go up to the mountains and she had her little cart drawn by her favourite donkey, Jacko.
11:00Hey, lovely.
11:01Because the lanes were too narrow for horse and carriage, so that's why she got about by donkey cart.
11:09She was passionate about animals, though, because I believe she helped to found the Animal Protection Society in Nice.
11:15So she was obsessed with making sure the animals were in this tremendous heat.
11:19And she was personally very generous with people.
11:22On one of her outings, she caught the attention of a one-legged beggar who got around in a dog cart and she gave him money.
11:31And, of course, he appeared then every time he heard she was coming by, here I am.
11:38And he would try to race her donkey cart with his dog cart.
11:43Then he got the idea that he was going to put a sign on his dog cart by special appointment to Her Majesty.
11:50I love that.
11:51Then the courtier said no.
11:53Going a little bit too far.
11:55Yeah.
11:56I've got a photograph here, black and white, of Queen Victoria turning up with her donkey and in the cart.
12:05I mean, she doesn't look excited, if I'm honest with you.
12:08I hope sometimes she had a laugh here.
12:10The thing I absolutely know is how much she loved it.
12:13Because on her deathbed, she said, if I were a niece, I would get better.
12:19If its mild Mediterranean climate made La Belle Nice the choice of 19th century royalty, its wonderful light quality also attracted many of the world's greatest painters over the years.
12:39And there's plenty of contemporary artists keeping their spirits alive.
12:47This is a bit mad, but it's exactly the sort of thing I do when I travel.
12:51I saw a poster for an artist who I'd never heard of, but I recognised the building in Nice.
12:57I loved the work and I thought he might be exhibiting near the building.
13:02So I walked all the way down here and I think this is him.
13:07I mean, I hope it's okay.
13:08Go and say hello.
13:12Omar?
13:13Yes?
13:14I'm Sandy.
13:15How nice to meet you.
13:16Omar, look, I saw this poster.
13:18Yes?
13:19This building is here, isn't it?
13:20Yeah.
13:21In the old town.
13:22When did you paint this?
13:23This I paint in winter time.
13:24Ah, the light is so...
13:25The light is beautiful in Nice.
13:27Oh, it's incredible.
13:28Omar Lugang has achieved a certain local fame in these parts as he and his easel have become almost a daily fixture on the Promenade des Anglais.
13:42He's had his work displayed in prestigious galleries and sells paintings from his lovely little pop-up studio.
13:47Born in Juba in Sudan, Omar studied fine art in Morocco and lived in Madrid before he was drawn to Nice.
13:542003, I come from Morocco, Morocco direct to Nice.
14:01I see the light and I say, oh my God, this is a beautiful city.
14:07Next year, I say, okay, I will come to holiday again.
14:11I come on holiday for three months painting only the people in the base so that I go back to Madrid.
14:18In 2010, I say, okay, I need to live in Nice.
14:21That's it.
14:22And it was the light?
14:23Yes, the light.
14:24All the artists come to South France to painting the light, like Matisse, Bangor, Renoir.
14:35All the big artists come to South France because the light is beautiful.
14:39Oh, it's incredible.
14:40So is there a time that you like to paint?
14:42Yes, I like to paint it early in the morning, in the evening.
14:46And the people?
14:47There's lots of wonderful people on the beach.
14:49At least the people, you know, the people on the beach, this is for me.
14:52I need to enjoy my day early in the morning, like at 10 o'clock in the morning, the people coming to the beach.
14:58Oh, sit there.
14:59Oh, okay, I take my painting quickly in 20 minutes.
15:03Yeah.
15:04In 20 minutes.
15:05Oh, it's fantastic.
15:06There's no more than 20 minutes.
15:07Omar loves to work in oils, and his paintings capture the vibrant life on Nice's famous promenade.
15:16All bathed in that glorious sunshine.
15:20Here, everybody says Omar is, art is very famous.
15:25For me, this is no work for me.
15:27I'm looking for my happiness, you know that.
15:30My happiness is painting.
15:33There's a painting here that I just love because of the light.
15:36Yes, yes.
15:37And I sat there this morning.
15:38It's like, I don't know, it sort of represents Nice, don't you think?
15:41Yes, because the SES blue, this is something about Nice, you know that.
15:46Yeah.
15:47The single of Nice.
15:48And everybody comes here for another onglet, to stay to the SES blue.
15:52To stay there, to eat the breakfast, or to read the newspaper.
15:57May I have a closer look?
15:58Is it all right?
15:59Yes, yes, yes.
16:00But look at the brushstrokes.
16:01Yes, the brush, yes.
16:02So do you lay lots of layers of...
16:04Yes, the brush, only the brush.
16:06I use the brush.
16:07You can see, you can see the...
16:08Yeah, many brushes.
16:09Wow.
16:10And then I use the brush.
16:11So the people, in the beginning, see, say maybe it's knife.
16:14I say, no, it's not knife, it's brush.
16:16All the painting, you can see, they are very energy, strong.
16:21You know that I have the guarantee to put the color.
16:25Well, I am so glad I tracked you down, because I love the work.
16:29I think it is magnificent.
16:30Yeah, because Nice is the light.
16:32Nice is the light.
16:33Right.
16:34The Riviera may be best known for its high life and luxury, but I'm genuinely impressed
16:45by all the artistic activity in Nice.
16:49And to sample a bit more of it, I'm off to meet yet another American resident, sculptor
16:55Kim Beloukos.
16:57Kim moved here over 30 years ago, so she's practically French now.
17:04Her work explores nature, and in particular, animals.
17:09And she uses a lot of metal and welding in her creations.
17:13Today, she's kindly allowed me to help her with this antelope sculpture.
17:18Kim, I'm Sandy.
17:20Sandy.
17:21Oh, this is so exciting.
17:23Nice to meet you.
17:24Nice to meet you.
17:25Look at you.
17:26Yes, I've been working all day.
17:27Have you?
17:28Yes.
17:29Okay, so it's leather.
17:30Is there going to be some?
17:31Yes, and you're going to have to wear one as well.
17:33I love this.
17:34I love this.
17:35What do I need protecting from?
17:37Well, we're going to be using some oxides, so you don't get stains on your clothing.
17:43Oh, that's quite a strong smell of the butcher.
17:44I like it.
17:45Yes, it just came from...
17:46I just bought it, so it's not old and used like mine.
17:50Yours is wonderful.
17:51So, this is your work?
17:53Yes, this is my work.
17:54I love animals and I just love nature.
17:59There's so many artists in this area.
18:01Is there something about the area that inspired you?
18:03Well, for me, because I'm a welder and I weld outside, I like living in Nice because there are so many sunny days.
18:11So, I could work every month of the year.
18:13And just keep going.
18:14And keep going.
18:15So, it was perfect.
18:16Also, the colours here are just so vibrant.
18:18It's magnificent, isn't it?
18:19Yeah.
18:20It's just so...
18:21It really is inspiring.
18:24And believe it or not, Kim's going to let me help colour this beautiful creation.
18:29All right.
18:30First, we're going to heat this.
18:32I don't put acids in my different oxides.
18:35So, we have to heat it so it sticks to the surface.
18:39What is the effect that you're going to want?
18:42Because I think this looks magnificent.
18:43So, what is it that you're hoping to do?
18:45Well, I could make it black like this bronze sculpture or green like this one.
18:51You can do any colour you want, basically.
18:53And it's a chemical reaction on the bronze?
18:54It's a chemical reaction at the surface.
18:56I apply one colour first.
18:58Then I let it sit for 24 hours.
19:01Then I apply a second colour.
19:02Right.
19:03And then a third.
19:04And it gives a lot of transparency and depth.
19:07So, right now, you see the natural colour.
19:10A little tiny bit of green and even some yellow, isn't it?
19:12Yes.
19:13Yeah.
19:14So, this will change as soon as we start heating it and applying the colour.
19:17So, I'm a little nervous about acid.
19:18Is acid there?
19:19No, there is no acid.
19:20Oh, good.
19:21That's why I'm saying if you want to not heat, then you have to use acid.
19:23Right.
19:24I prefer to heat.
19:25Okay.
19:26I'm with you.
19:27Let's do that.
19:28Okay.
19:29I think I'm probably anti-acid.
19:30I don't know.
19:31Yeah, me too.
19:32If that's a thing.
19:33I don't know.
19:34So, we have paint brushes.
19:35And let's see.
19:36Turn this on.
19:37Wow.
19:38I mean, a lot of trees here.
19:39Just saying.
19:40Yeah, I know.
19:41I know.
19:42We can just do the legs.
19:43Oh, okay.
19:44So, this is how we do it.
19:45Right.
19:46This is a small surface.
19:47So, it'll heat fast.
19:48Is this your style to always have the elongated legs?
19:51Yes.
19:52I love this.
19:53That's what I'm known for.
19:54Okay.
19:55Could you do a statue of me with the elongated legs?
19:57If you'd like.
19:58It would make me very happy.
19:59It would make me very happy.
20:01Okay.
20:02You don't need gloves or a welding helmet or anything?
20:05Yes.
20:06Actually, we will put on gloves.
20:07Okay.
20:08Here are new gloves for you.
20:09Oh, you are so lovely.
20:10So, where do you then sell your work?
20:11Where is it exhibited?
20:12I do a lot in Switzerland and in New York, but I have clients from around the world.
20:25Right.
20:26So, I've got the gloves on.
20:27And now, what we'll do is we'll put a little bit of color on.
20:38Mm-hmm.
20:40But then we'll wipe most of it off, actually.
20:42Just creating a reaction, is that the thing?
20:43Yes.
20:44Okay.
20:45And then what we do, although it's not heated enough, we should hear a little bit of hissing
20:50from the heating.
20:55I mean, I'm seeing red now.
20:57Is it going to be red?
20:58It will be red, but then I always do several colors at a time.
21:01Right.
21:02So, at the end, I have no idea what it will be.
21:06I love that, though.
21:07I really love that.
21:09So, I have a friend of mine who does a lot of wood sculpture, but in what they call green
21:13wood, you know, fresh wood.
21:14Never quite knows what it's going to be, because the wood itself has some life in it.
21:19Don't you think that's exciting?
21:20Absolutely.
21:21Yeah.
21:22Absolutely.
21:23And you might say, I want it to be this color.
21:24Yeah.
21:25But then you're working in progress, and it's like, this is great.
21:28Why do I need to go to the end?
21:30This is what it should be.
21:31And you stop.
21:32So, I don't know if you can hear it, but it's not really hissing.
21:35Oh, that one hissed.
21:36That was it.
21:37Oh, there, and here.
21:38There's a little bubbly thing happening.
21:39Yep.
21:40So, when people buy a work in bronze, they're buying a whole series of steps that they don't
21:53even realize that have been involved.
21:55But I love that, because it has you in it.
21:57Yeah, it's wonderful.
21:59I like that, you know, it's a woman doing welding.
22:07Go, girl.
22:08That's the other thing, because when I used to go to art shows with my former husband,
22:13we would go, and they would immediately run over to him and say, oh, we love your piece.
22:17Oh.
22:18And then he'd say, no, it's not me.
22:19It's the woman over there.
22:21It's there.
22:22My woodland has signs up that say, warning, these woods contain women with chainsaws.
22:29That's good, right?
22:30Yeah, absolutely.
22:34Is it a she?
22:35It's a she.
22:36It feels she.
22:37In French, antelope.
22:38Antelope is female.
22:39Female.
22:40So, it's an antelope.
22:41Okay.
22:42So, when she's done, please, will you let me know how she got on?
22:46Of course.
22:47I will send you a picture of her.
22:48Would you?
22:49And definitely.
22:50I feel just this leg here.
22:52I have a little investment.
22:53Yes, well, absolutely.
22:54And I'm going to tell everyone that you participated in creating this beautiful color.
23:00See, I can see how you can get lost in this, because this is a lovely space.
23:06It's so interesting.
23:07I could see how you could do hours and hours and hours of this.
23:10It's great.
23:11Yeah.
23:16I'm leaving the city now, and the beaches and clear skies are back, as I head through
23:26Villefranche-sur-Mer to the exclusive peninsula of Cap Ferrat.
23:31The peninsula of Cap Ferrat was first settled hundreds of years ago by rulers who wanted
23:44to stop pirates and brigands.
23:47Now it's all pretty much just luxury yachts.
23:50I mean, I suspect there are some pirates and brigands out there that just don't say OR
23:55anymore to make it, you know, obvious.
24:01No wonder they wanted to keep out the pirates, as this almost island jutting out into the sea offers
24:08stunning views for anyone rich enough to be able to afford a house here.
24:14And I do mean rich, as this is exclusive even for these parts.
24:19It is one of the most expensive residential areas in the world.
24:24I think we've already established that artists from all over the world are drawn to the Côte
24:29d'Azur because of the light and because of the colour.
24:32And in fact, one of those painters was Winston Churchill, a considerably skilful amateur painter.
24:38His paintings now go for millions.
24:40And indeed, it's rumoured that Angelina Jolie owns one.
24:43He liked to stay here at the Voile d'Or Hotel at the Golden Sale.
24:48He liked it so much, was such a regular, that he made a painting of the hotel.
24:52And the town has commemorated this fact with a statue of Winston painting that exact scene.
25:00The only problem is he's facing this way and the scene's over there.
25:05I mean, I know the town spent a lot of money on it. It's just...
25:08Other than that, fabulous.
25:11No wonder Churchill loved to paint here, as the views really are incredible.
25:24And I'm lucky to be staying in a place which may have the best views of the lot.
25:30Perched high on the cliffs above the port stands the grand hotel Cap Ferrat.
25:36This historic hotel has welcomed artists like Picasso, Matisse, Cocteau, Mogdigliani and Rodin over the years.
25:48But it's mostly been a magnet for aristocrats and the very rich.
25:51Suites here can cost over 10,000 euros a night.
25:58Quite frankly, it's the poshest hotel I've ever checked into.
26:01This hotel is one of less than 30 in France that have been given a special palace status.
26:18Which means it's more than one of those poxy five-star affairs.
26:22I'm seriously worried we won't make the end of this trip now.
26:26As I reckon the producers have just blown the budget on this place.
26:35Oh, wow.
26:36Oh, wow.
26:44Oh, yeah.
26:46This'll do.
26:48A little champagne.
26:51Oh, my goodness.
26:55Wow.
26:56The bathroom lets out onto the terrace.
27:03Come on.
27:07The bedroom.
27:08I mean, who doesn't want a balcony with bathroom, bedroom and sitting room off it?
27:14Yeah, just need to open that champagne now.
27:18The great Gustaf Eiffel himself designed the Great Rotunda here.
27:25And like my room, it offers panoramic views of the Mediterranean.
27:33Its history is part of the hotel's charm.
27:36And General Manager François-Régis Simon has kindly made time to tell me more.
27:41I have been lucky to stay in a lot of five-star hotels around the world.
27:46But this is something else.
27:47What do you call that?
27:48It's the next step up.
27:49Okay, the next step up is called Palace.
27:52We were happy to get that distinction.
27:55We were the first, actually, on the Côte d'Azur in 2015.
27:58Well, I'm not surprised, François, at all.
28:00So what are the sort of extras that guests who come here might expect?
28:05We need to go the extra mile, you know, compared to a five-star hotel.
28:08Obviously, you need to have your room service running 24 hours.
28:12You need to have the spa available.
28:15You need to tick each box, you know, to benefit from that distinction.
28:18And actually, every three years, we need to present again the hotel in front of a jury.
28:24Okay, do you want me to come and I'll tell them?
28:26You know, if you can, you can help me to do that.
28:29You know, I send you the invite, right?
28:30So if you have a guest who arrives and says, I don't eat dairy and my husband is gluten-free and my children like ice cream and things, you just write it and that's it, it's all happening?
28:42All the needs of the client is already pre-recorded in a system and we have access to that system to see, do you like a feather pillow?
28:52Do you like strawberries?
28:54You know, maybe my son is allergic to this, you know, I need to pay attention to that.
28:59This is part of what we call the pre-arrival experience, right?
29:01Right.
29:02Where my guest experience team will reach out to these guests, you know, to actually ensure that we haven't missed anything.
29:13When you took over as the manager, it must have been a huge responsibility because of the incredible history of this place.
29:19It's true. I mean, what is very interesting about Kapferra, you know, Kapferra went through a lot of changes.
29:24Basically, before 1900, he was just a fishing village, right?
29:27King Leopold II, King of Belgium, he acquired basically two-thirds of Saint-Jean Kapferra.
29:34Oh, wow.
29:35And what happened, he started to get bored, right?
29:37And, you know, he wanted to invite all the aristocrats, you know, from Europe.
29:41And he didn't have hotels at that time of the quality required, you know, to welcome them.
29:47So I'm going to guess Leopold didn't start his own hotel.
29:49No, no, no. It's what happened.
29:50He sold basically part of the land to a promoter who actually started in 1905
29:55to build the Grante de la Capferra.
29:58And this is where you can start to see head of states coming,
30:02people from the UK, people from Europe.
30:06Especially for Kapferra, 1933 was actually the tipping point
30:11where they filmed Don Quixote de la Mancha.
30:13And this is where they started to attract artists.
30:17And you saw all the impressionists coming, painting, and then the development of the Cannes Festival.
30:22And then you start to hear about Kapferra at that time.
30:29So I imagine you've had a lot of very famous people come to stay.
30:32Yeah, we had a few.
30:33Between politicians, you have people from the show business having their summer home as well in this area.
30:41Elizabeth Teller was actually a huge fan of us.
30:46Before Elizabeth Teller, Winston Churchill, you know, he liked really to come to Kapferra for his painting.
30:52You know, King Charles, you know, paid us a visit four years ago, like a state visit, you know, with Monaco.
30:58And we had a pleasure to welcome them.
31:00You know what's wonderful though, Francois, is that I'm not a movie star or a royal, but you feel like that when you walk in.
31:06That's good. Excellent.
31:07So I need to come back when I'm not working.
31:09Yeah, for sure. Maybe the second visit will be different, you know, and as you will be on vacation, you know, you might be experiencing something different, right?
31:16Well, also, I'm going to walk through the door and go, Francois!
31:19I guess we're friends now, right?
31:20Exactly.
31:21Thank you very much.
31:22I cannot believe how lucky I am to be here. What an incredible view. So, in the 1930s, this was sheer rock face and they wanted a swimming pool.
31:36What do you do? You get shed loads of Italian engineers to come and blast the rock face.
31:40And pretty soon, people like Charlie Japlin, Picasso, David Niven were doing lengths here.
31:45For 70 years, the same swimming instructor, Pierre Grunberg, taught the great and the good.
31:51Paul McCartney's children, for example. I mean, he couldn't do it. The guitar would get wet.
31:55So I'm going to have a go. I need a tiny bikini and a very, very small towel.
32:00And I believe the staff have arranged this for me. Thank you so much.
32:04Obviously, I'm not going to walk down. Too rich for that. I shall take the funicular.
32:20We could scramble down the hillside, but we're too rich, so we're gliding.
32:25We glide towards luxury.
32:35I want one of these in my house. I just, first I need to get a hill.
32:42A lot of those celebrity visitors to this famous pool actually learned to swim here.
32:49It would be hard to overcome your fear of water in such a beautiful location.
32:55This has got to be the ultimate celebrity swimming pool.
33:04It's the sort of place you might have, I don't know, drifted past Robert Redford.
33:07I have to tell you, it is salty enough to put on your chips.
33:10I've never known such salty water.
33:12You can have the place entirely to yourself if you're very, very wealthy.
33:16Or, other top tip, turn up early with a film crew.
33:20That seems to work as well.
33:22I'm staying in Cap Verrat for one more day, and my motive isn't just to enjoy yet more luxury in my swanky grand hotel.
33:37For it turns out the hotel is just one of a cluster of beautiful houses in what's known as the Cape of Billionaires.
33:56Today, I'm visiting two of them, and the first offers a spot of high culture.
34:08The Villa Santa Suspiria doesn't just have great art on its walls.
34:13Its walls actually are great art.
34:17All of them are covered by the drawings of Jean Cocteau, one of the leading figures of the avant-garde movement of the mid-20th century.
34:26So, definitely not your average painter and decorator.
34:33I've read about this. I wasn't expecting it to be so overwhelming and complete.
34:51You know, sometimes your friends are a bit critical, and they say your place needs decorating, and you're not all that pleased.
34:57But when is Jean Cocteau, and he decides to do decorating?
35:00This is what you get.
35:01He said this was the skin of the house, and what it needed was tattoos.
35:06And I mean, look at it.
35:10He could tattoo me any time. This is extraordinary.
35:19I mean, this is how good it is. The view out there is magnificent, and I don't care.
35:23I don't care, because I can look at this.
35:26He always described himself as a poet, even though he did film, and he did plays, and he wrote books.
35:32But this is kind of poetry, isn't it? This is just poetry without words, is that a thing? It is now.
35:54Cocteau didn't own the house. He was invited to stay here by the actual owner, wealthy arts patron Frances Weisweiler, in 1950.
36:04She must have liked his company, though, as he ended up staying for 11 years.
36:11Instead of rent, he repaid her with possibly the best free wallpapering job in history.
36:22This is the second time on this trip that I've been inside an artwork.
36:27I was inside the Picasso, and now inside Cocteau.
36:32There's something about the air and the Riviera, because, boy, are people creative.
36:38Oh, look here, look, look here, look here.
36:40There's his name signed.
36:43First time, May, 1950.
36:46Love that.
36:48He's still here in the room.
36:50I mean, I don't know how you feel about that as a guest. He's still here, won't leave. I don't know.
36:55Charles Dickens once had Hans Christian Andersen to stay, and he stayed forever.
37:00And afterwards he said, guests are like fish, they go off after three days.
37:05But I think, I think this I would have, I would have been fine with.
37:20It's really hard to top that experience, but my next villa offers something very different.
37:25In the 1870s, France entered into a period of peace and prosperity.
37:29It was a time of tremendous optimism, technological advancements, and if you had the money, on the south of France, building of opulent villas.
37:37Of which I think the jewel has to be the Villa Euphraise, which was the creation and love child of Beatrice de Rothschild.
37:49Beatrice de Rothschild was born into the famous banking family in Paris in 1864.
37:55Her father, Alphonse, was then the richest man in France, and she eventually inherited a share of his fortune.
38:04Inspired by her travels in Italy, she used a pretty big chunk of that cash to create a wonderful palazzo and a jigsaw of beautiful gardens on this headland that juts out into the sea.
38:22When she died, Beatrice donated the estate to the French Académie des Beaux-Arts.
38:29Lucky me to be getting a private viewing with tour guide Jacqueline Mancier.
38:36Oh, look at this. This is a theatre set.
38:40It is. It certainly is. And the villa and the gardens are theatre stages, really. Social theatre, but theatre stages.
38:49I love this. So, I'm not very good on styles, but Venetian? Feels Venetian?
38:53Yeah. For me, it's mostly Venetian, yes.
38:55Typical of the Edouard Nier, I would say, what we call Belle Époque in French, eclecticism.
39:01And what about the galleries? Did people walk up there?
39:04Yeah, those were meant for the musicians.
39:08Ah!
39:09So, she gave garden panties in the gardens and soires here. So, the guests couldn't see the musicians, but they had an impression of the music fell out from the sky.
39:17So, this is before speakers. This is like moderns. This is speakers of the time.
39:21What's striking about the place is its wonderful joie de vivre. It's brimming with ornate furniture, and Beatrice filled its walls with great art.
39:33It made me want to find out more about the surprisingly independent woman of means who created this architectural masterpiece.
39:46When you stand here, you realize that the garden is an artwork.
39:50It is.
39:51All of its own, isn't it?
39:52It is. I'm convinced she wanted to recreate the Garden of Eden.
39:57Ah, okay. So, let's talk about her. What do we know about Beatrice?
40:01So, Beatrice, she was born in Paris. She was born in 1864. She was very lucky because her father was a real connoisseur in art. He loved gardens.
40:13So, he marries her off to an older man?
40:15Um, well, 15 years. That's okay.
40:1715 years. Oh, okay. That's right. Yeah.
40:19And his name is the name of this villa?
40:21That's right, Mr. Frussi. So, she was born de Rothschild.
40:25And she married an Efrussi.
40:28But it wasn't a happy marriage?
40:29Uh, not at all. She had a disease. So, she remained bedridden during 16 months.
40:37You can say it. She had syphilis.
40:39Uh, we're not sure gonorrhea or something nasty anyway.
40:41Okay. Not a good thing. But from, from because her husband was a naughty man.
40:46All men have mistresses, especially in those years.
40:51Okay.
40:52I mean, it's, um...
40:53It's a very French sentence.
40:54It's a smallity.
40:55Okay.
40:56Okay.
40:57All right.
40:58A bourgeois.
40:59A bourgeois.
41:00A bourgeois.
41:01Okay.
41:02Must have mistresses.
41:03But this house is without him. It's after she divorces him.
41:06That's right.
41:07And so, you can feel it's just her creation.
41:09So, she got separated from her husband in 1904. Uh, and in 1905, her father died and her
41:15father was a feminist. He was.
41:17Oh, wonderful.
41:18Wonderful.
41:19Yeah.
41:20Equal share for his daughter and his son. Bravo.
41:22So, suddenly she's very wealthy.
41:24That's right.
41:25And with the money that her father left her, she purchased the mule track at the top of the
41:29rocky crest because she realized she could see the sea on both sides.
41:33Wow.
41:34So, this was not the kind of wealthiest land in the world at the time?
41:37No, no, no.
41:38Not at all.
41:39She paid her square meter six francs fifty and to create the villa and the gardens where
41:44she had the rock blasted, dynamited.
41:46I love her.
41:47I love her.
41:48She's so bold.
41:49So, do I.
41:50So, six francs fifty for, like, where we're standing, she paid.
41:52Yeah.
41:53What would you pay now for what?
41:54Uh, eight thousand euros square foot.
41:55Wow.
41:56The estate is estimated half a billion.
41:59And to think of all the people you'd have to hire to keep these gardens looking like this.
42:04You wonder how Beatrice found any time to enjoy herself.
42:07But she most definitely did.
42:12Did she have lovers then after the, after their separation?
42:15She was a lesbian, so.
42:16Oh, okay.
42:17All right.
42:18I like her better and better.
42:19Yeah, so do I.
42:21Um, to sum up the lady, she's a woman, Jewish, lesbian, playing poker and separated from my
42:26husband, born 1864.
42:27A woman after one half.
42:29I love them because, you know, they, they, they kick the door and make a little crack and
42:34then we just had to follow.
42:35Yeah.
42:36I think that's wonderful.
42:37And did, and did she have a long-term lover or just lots of women?
42:41She became extremely discreet.
42:42I had the impression she was successively faithful.
42:45Okay.
42:46I like that.
42:47I think that's a very, very good description.
42:50So the gardens, which we can see from up here, are they divided up into different sections?
42:55Uh, that's right.
42:56Uh, so this is the main section because it's here that she would give garden parties every
43:01Sunday afternoon to which she invited Queen Victor's son.
43:04So he was a neighbor.
43:05Oh, of course.
43:06He had a little foot nearby.
43:07Of course.
43:08And she had a very special sense of humor because at the same gun party, she would invite
43:12Miss Keppel.
43:13Oh, very good.
43:14Alice Keppel, the actress.
43:16Yes.
43:17And the mistress.
43:18And the mistress of the, yeah.
43:20That's the mistress of Edward VII, incidentally.
43:23He was, of course, Queen Victoria's son.
43:25So he probably came down here a lot as a kid.
43:28One of my favorite is Princess Guicard.
43:32So, um, Princess Guicard in a previous life was the, uh, Great Horizontal in French.
43:39We call them Grand Horizontal, Great Horizontal, Lienne de Pougie.
43:42What does that mean?
43:43The Great Horizontal?
43:44She was a famous called his hands.
43:45Oh, I'm so sorry.
43:46Okay.
43:47It's not punk.
43:48That's what we're talking about.
43:49No, that's fine.
43:50I need to be more French, I think.
43:52Yeah.
43:53I'm afraid so.
43:54But...
43:57I need to see some more.
43:58May we go this way?
43:59Please do.
44:02I'm getting the impression that rather a lot happened in the bedrooms at this place.
44:07Time to take a peek.
44:10I'd like to show you that we might have slept.
44:13Oh, okay.
44:14You've got to be jealous.
44:15The waiting list is very long.
44:16Okay.
44:17Is this a guest bedroom, then?
44:18It was, uh, nicest guest room.
44:20Oh.
44:21Oh.
44:22So I can see the sea from the bed.
44:25That's right.
44:26And if I lie this side, I can see the sea from the bed.
44:29That's right.
44:30Oh, isn't it magnificent?
44:31And the gardens ahead.
44:32And you have a tiny balcony.
44:34And these, would these have been proper old...
44:3618th century.
44:3718th century.
44:38But, yeah, yeah.
44:39So they were electrified in the 20th century.
44:42She wanted to have everything.
44:44Beautiful landscape, refined eco, mostly the 18th century.
44:48And the last one in comfort.
44:50Electricity, running water, central heating system.
44:53Look at the breast waiting.
44:54This is...
44:55This is heating coming up.
44:56Yeah.
44:57It had some boilers in the basement.
44:58I like it.
44:59Telephone.
45:00I like her style.
45:01Elevator.
45:02Okay.
45:03Please tell me she liked to have a drink.
45:04Like, was she fun?
45:05She was.
45:06Yeah.
45:07Parties?
45:08Parties.
45:09Soirees.
45:10She gave soirees in patio.
45:11And don't forget...
45:12Why?
45:13Of course.
45:14Yeah.
45:15The...
45:16The parental grandfather is the one that purchased Lafitte Roughside.
45:20Oh, eh?
45:21And the maternal grade of Hertfordshire's the other one, Mouton Roughside.
45:24So Lafitte on the other side, and Mouton on the other side.
45:26So you don't have to put a bit of shops do you?
45:28No.
45:29You just have one from the family.
45:30That's right.
45:31I love that.
45:32Absolutely.
45:33This is...
45:34This is my dream room.
45:35I love this room.
45:36I can't help thinking what fun it would have been to come to one of Beatrice's parties.
45:46To this day the name Rothschild is synonymous with unimaginable wealth.
45:51Look at this place.
45:52The good news is that you can rent it out for yourself.
45:55A wedding, say, because we are talking, I think, hundreds of thousands, not tens of
46:00thousands.
46:01So, I don't know, maybe start saving now.
46:06Ah well, it's time to leave this headland of ornate villas.
46:17Thing is, where I'm going next is even more exclusive.
46:23See you in Monaco.
46:36Take care.
46:52Ah?
46:54You
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