The writer Somerset Maugham memorably summarised the Riviera as ‘a sunny place for shady people’ – but that was in the good old days.
In recent decades, it’s assumed a darker edge, with Formula 1 champion Jenson Button and fashionista Trinny Woodall among those robbed – and, they insist, gassed – while they slept.
Now, I can disclose, the gangs have claimed one of their biggest scalps yet: Alexander Kraft – the man to whom Johnny Depp turned when, following his split from Amber Heard, he decided to sell his village in the South of France.
The ineffably stylish Kraft, who’s amassed many millions from the numerous enterprises he runs in tandem with his role as chief executive and sole shareholder of Sotheby’s International [Real Estate] France-Monaco, was spared a gassing but little else.
He pulled up at his country house in Provence to find it ‘not only burgled but vandalised’.
Alexander Kraft arrived at his mansion in Provence, France to find it burgled and ransacked
Krafts home vandalised. The Sothebys boss said it had been one of the biggest losses in my life
A smashed picture left on the bed, with other furniture left damaged
The vandals also took artwork and through it in Krafts pool
In a heartfelt message to friends, Kraft, whose cars include an Aston Martin DB6, lets go in very blunt English. ‘Screw you, you bloody criminals!’ he begins, describing what happened as ‘one of the biggest losses in my life, not only financially but also emotionally’.
Explaining that being the victim of ‘a burglary or robbery is bad enough’, he says that to have ‘25+ years of passionate collecting and many (family) memories wiped... is devastating’.
But something else shocked him even more – ‘the apparent degree of brainless vandalism. What sort of animal throws unique works of art into the pool just for “fun”?’
Understandably, Kraft refrains from listing what was ransacked. But, aside from being a connoisseur of art and cars, he’s known for his collection of watches, among them an Art Deco Cartier pocket watch and a 1970s Rolex valued at £420,000.
Their rarity, he believes, presents an opportunity.
‘The French FBI is already on the case,’ says Kraft, who once had a Rolex stolen at knife-point in Miami. ‘These hardened criminals will get their comeuppance sooner [rather] than later.’ That’s the spirit!
Zacs fiancee Hum shows off sparkler
Since I revealed last month that Zac Goldsmith was so shaken and stirred by Hum Fleming that he had gone down on bended knee, the couple have not publicly confirmed their engagement.
At a family wedding at the weekend, however, the great-niece of James Bond author Ian Fleming was happy to show off the impressive sparkler given to her by the former Tory minister.
Hum, 34, a public relations executive in the fashion and lifestyle sector, will be the third wife of Lord Goldsmith, 49, and a stepmother to his six children.
Last year, I disclosed that the son of late billionaire Sir James Goldsmith had split from his second wife, Alice Rothschild, 41, who he married in 2013.
Stanburys saucy surprise
Caroline Stanbury, who once said relationships died when they entered the ‘comfort zone’, has found a way to keep things spicy with her toyboy husband, Sergio Carrallo.
The socialite, 48, who’s an old friend of Prince Andrew, organised a surprise ‘Eyes Wide Shut’ themed 30th birthday party for him based on Stanley Kubrick’s erotic psychological drama, which starred Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman.
Caroline Stanbury organised a surprise ‘Eyes Wide Shut’ themed 30th birthday party for him based on Stanley Kubrick’s erotic psychological drama
‘It was a night to remember,’ Caroline says next to this picture of the pair in masquerade masks.
Ex-footballer Sergio, wearing a cape and little else, gushes: ‘I couldn’t feel more blessed.’
Candys superyacht sale
Property tycoon Nick Candy has discovered that floating gin palaces can be as lucrative as those on land.
Candy, 51, who’s married to former pop star Holly Valance, has reported a €12.7 million (£10.6 million) profit on the sale of his superyacht, 11.11.
Property tycoon Nicky Candy has netted a reported £10.6million profit on the sale of his superyacht
11.11 was built in 2015 by Italian yacht builder Benetti and scooped a World Superyacht Award in 2016
The 207ft-long vessel was built in 2015 by Italian yacht builder Benetti and scooped a World Superyacht Award in 2016.
Candy said in 2020: ‘I’ve been approached over the last few years to sell it but I’ve always said no.’
Stanleys butterfly mission
Boris Johnson’s father Stanley has taken on a new challenge – saving Britain’s most endangered butterfly.
‘The High Brown Fritillary is very rare and only exists now in a couple of places in the south-west of England,’ he tells me at the House Of Assets event at jewellery designer Theo Fennell’s studio in Chelsea.
Boris Johnsons father Stanley is on a new mission to save endangered butterfly the High Brown Fritillary
‘We have had them on my farm.You have to make sure the habitat is right for them. They need green leaves from violets. Violets grow well under bracken – but not too much – so you need to keep the bracken under control. To do that, I’ve now got seven Exmoor ponies. They are wonderful. They help make paths through it.’
Sam Palmers American breakfast woes
He moved to LA with his wife, the Formula 1 heiress Petra Ecclestone, who has an estimated fortune of £300 million, but Sam Palmer is not happy. The estate agent complains that American restaurants don’t know how to serve breakfast.
‘You get bacon on a dish, mushroom on a dish, eggs on a dish,’ he wails. ‘I thought I’d be clever and ask: “Put it all on the same plate, please.” It came with all the different dishes on a plate. I nearly exploded.’
He adds: ‘Americans, when a British man orders breakfast, put it all on the same plate – and never have chicken sausage ever again, you plebs.’ Temper, temper…
Sam Palmer and Petra Ecclestone at the Maddox Gallery in Los Angeles in June 2019