By PETER ALLEN She is one of the most famous faces in the world, renowned for her Gallic charm, elegant style and classical beauty. But it seems that the First Lady of France is never happier than when she is strolling through the streets of Paris – incognito, that is. In fact, Carla Bruni even admits donning a special disguise and affecting a ‘funny voice’ to avoid being spotted, much like Marie Antoinette was said to have done during the French Revolution. Undercover: Carla Bruni in dark glasses and dark coat, an outfit she prefers to wear while touring the streets of Paris incognito Ms Bruni, 41, said her life as the third wife of President Nicolas Sarkozy sometimes made ‘normal’ behaviour quite impossible, leading her to take these extraordinary measures. In a magazine interview to be published tomorrow she says: ‘When I go out shopping I disguise myself by putting on glasses and I change my voice.’ Those who have heard it say the ‘new’ voice of the model-turned-singer is ‘funny and quite different to anything you normally hear’. Rather than being deep, husky and understated – as it is when Ms Bruni speaks at official engagements or croons during stage performances – it is ‘melodramatic and faintly ridiculous’, according to a source in the French capital. In disguise: Marie Antoinette was said to have travelled around Paris secretly to avoid the wrath of the people as the French Revolution grew pace The source added: ‘Carla is first and foremost an artist and loves performing. Making everybody think she is someone else while she does her shopping appeals to her sense of mischief. ‘She acts like this for security reasons but does run the risk of sounding like an unpopular member of the French aristocracy. Elegant: Carla at last year's state banquet held at Windsor Castle ‘As the recession deepens, high-profile members of the ruling class are not becoming any more popular.’ Despite the comedy element, there is a serious side to Ms Bruni’s disguise. Her husband has just completed two years in office during which France’s economic fortunes have plunged, though not her husband’s – Mr Sarkozy awarded himself a 100 per cent-plus pay rise within weeks of taking office in May 2007. Ms Bruni has also enjoyed an increasingly luxurious lifestyle. One leading critic recently called her ‘Carla Antoinette’, comparing her to the legendary French queen who was constantly spoiled by her husband, Louis XVI, before she was sent to the guillotine. Mr Sarkozy has approved a scheme to give away thousands of Ms Bruni’s CDs as part of a taxpayer-funded campaign to try to revive the French First Lady’s flagging pop career. The collection of songs, which she wrote herself, will be sent to marketing ‘ambassadors’ around the world, ostensibly to promote all French produce. Gérald Andrieu, of the highbrow political weekly Marianne, said it would not be long before Italian-born Ms Bruni was used to assist other French industries, including fashion. He wrote: ‘We wait with impatience the promotional week of haute couture. For Carla Antoinette of Italy, it will perhaps be the occasion for her to get rid of her old dresses which she doesn’t want any more.’ Ms Bruni will also be promoting her new CD in her interview, which is published in the magazine Femme Actuelle (Current Woman) tomorrow. She invited five ‘ordinary housewives’ into the Elysée Palace to question her about her day-to-day life. A spokesman said there would be no comment about the private lives of Ms Bruni or Mr Sarkozy.It's Carla Antoinette: France's First Lady tours recession-hit Paris in disguise just like aristocrats during the Revolution
Last updated at 12:52 AM on 17th May 2009
Sunday, 17 May 2009
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