Bling Bling the bells are ringing aren’t they?

Perhaps they already are. Perhaps they aren’t. In any case speculation is rife as to whether the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, and his belle, former supermodel-turned-singer, Carla Bruni, have “pledged their vows”.

But we’ve been promised that we’ll probably be the last find out about it once it has happened, should it happen.

It has barely been three months since the couple first met, so by anyone’s standards it truly has been a whirlwind romance conducted at the breakneck speed with which Sarkozy does just about everything.

So before the roller coaster journey from the first public photo op at Disneyland ends with the alter of whatever temple the two choose to tie the knot, time to take a quick look at the president’s current girlfriend and potentially first foreign-born French First Lady.

Her life so far has been a real US-style soap opera, so much so that she totally out-Dallases Dallas. On the surface at least she would seem well-suited to hold court as First Lady at what many have termed the palace of France’s own Bling Bling presidency.

Certainly if press reports are to be believed, she has already made herself at home, dolling up one room at the president’s official residence, the Elysée palace, as her “pop music room” where she presumably at some point intends to put together ditties for a third best-selling album.

She has also been quoted as saying she’s ready to put aside her life as a seductress and would be perfect for the job of First Lady. That’s a far cry from the sentiments of Cecilia Sarkozy, who couldn’t get away from the trappings of being Mrs President fast enough.

The daughter of a wealthy Italian industrialist and composer, Alberto Bruni Tedeschi, and the Italian concert pianist, Marisa Borini, Bruni was born in Turin, moved to France with her family when she was just five and was “discovered” by the world of catwalks at 19.

She has long been considered one of the world’s most beautiful women – the kind who would make wearing a tea cosy not only fashionable but probably also sexy.

Over the years she has acquired the reputation as something of a “man eater”, not an image she has been eager to play down, even apparently going as far as to say once that “I am monogamous from time to time, but I prefer polygamy and polyandry.”

In her 20s she had a much publicised on-off affair with Rolling Stone, Mick Jagger – and in her time has also dated a long and eclectic list of A-listers including US billionaire Donald Trump, British rock star Eric Clapton, Hollywood actor Kevin Costner and even former French Socialist prime minister, Laurent Fabius.

And how’s this for a one-woman double act so to speak. Seven years ago, while living with the French publisher, Jean-Paul Enthoven, she met and fell in love with his son, Raphael.

Bruni and Enthoven Jnr had a son, Aurélien – now six – who was most recently snapped bouncing around on the shoulders of the French president on the streets of Petra, Jordan.

How she will actually fit into Sarkozy’s circles leaves quite a lot to the imagination. She’s privileged bohemian chic with political views more in keeping with those of the president’s opponents. Indeed just shortly before meeting him she publicly criticised Sarkozy’s plans to crack down on illegal immigration and introduce DNA testing.

At 40, she bears a striking physical resemblance to Sarkozy’s second wife, Cecilia. And since her birthday just before Christmas, is also the proud owner of a €40 thousand something ring – a present from the president and an exact copy of one he had already given to Cecilia shortly before the end of their marriage.

So the big question remaining is will she or won’t she, or perhaps is she already (Mrs Sarkozy III)? All right so that’s more than one question

Maybe after all Sarkozy will heed the advice of his 80-year-old mother, Andrée, who just two weeks ago said in an interview that she hoped her son would not contemplate a third marriage as SHE had had more than enough of brides.

But the man is visibly head over heels and maybe her advice has already come too late – who cares? No one and everyone!

JS