Almost incomplete faction: Miss France 2013 versus Téléthon

Every year it's the same story here in France.

The annual beauty pageant to elect the country's  newest Miss falls on the same weekend as the national Téléthon.

A kiss from the president of the jury Alain Delon, as Marine Lorphelin is crowned Miss France 2013 - Ah! (screenshot from TF1)

TF1 - ever the sharp private channel that it is - broadcasts the annual "Boobs and butts fest"...oh, terribly sorry... the search for the young lady who best fits the bill as France's most beautiful woman and meets a set of criteria which would make her fitting role model in the 21st century and an ambassador for the country...or something equally blah, blah, blah.

Meanwhile the public-owned France télévisions, and most notably France 2, treats viewers to the money-raising event meant to encourage the French to tune in and dig deep into their pockets for the muscular dystrophy charity l'Association française contre les myopathies (AFM).

No prizes for guessing which "wins" in terms of viewing figures or ratings. More than eight million watched Miss France being crowned while not even one-and-a-half million managed to stick with the Téléthon.

But hang about.

Wouldn't it be more rather more noble if the organisation which owns the rights to the pageant, the Dutch television production company Endemol, actually chose another date.

After all it surely wouldn't require too much organisational effort and it would avoid the clash of conscience so many French must have: cheesy glamour or worthy (albeit it somewhat soporific in its length) charity event.

Just for the record this year's Miss France and the young woman who will spend a year upholding the values of the country...you know, the three teas: frivolity, maternity and...um...qwerty (or should that be azerty?) is Marine Lorphelin, a 19-year-old medical student from the town of Mâcon.

Miss Burgundy - as was - "charmed the judges and television viewers" to be crowned the new Miss France ahead of Misses from Tahiti and Nord-Pas de Calais.

Also taking part in what must be the only truly global national beauty pageant around were Misses from other far flung regions of France (and not just the bit at the heart of Europe that everyone knows and loves) such as Guadaloupe, Guyane, Martinique, Mayotte, New Caledonia, Saint Martin and er...South Kensington!

Well why not?

After all, the French president François Hollande has just appointed TV environmentalist, journalist and miffed  Europe Écologie-The Greens presidential primary candidate Nicolas Hulot to the post of "Special envoy to protect the planet".

So why shouldn't France have women from around the world battling it out to be crowned the country's latest Miss?

French TV pulls the plug on Carré Viiip

The Powers that Be at France's main private television channel, TF1, have decided to stop its latest venture into the realms of reality TV after barely two weeks.

On Thursday TF1 announced that it was dropping Carré Viiip with immediate effect.

Carré Viiip RIP (screenshot from programme trailer)

Just a refresher for those of you not in the know.

Carré Viiip was launched just less than two weeks ago amid the usual ostentatious fanfare that accompanies these things.

The "concept" (if that's not exaggerating a little) was to unite eight supposéd celebrities, who had made their names in previous reality shows, with the same number of anonymous wannabes eager to take their place.

It was meant to mark the 10th anniversary of reality television programmes in France.

Except it didn't quite turn out that way.

Instead it has come to an ignominious end with TF1 dropping it completely and replacing it with imported US series.

Officially it was because of poor ratings as TF1's director of programmes, Laurent Storch, explained on Europe 1 radio.

"Yesterday (Thursday) it only attracted 13 per cent of the total viewing public for its time slot and that's far too low for TF1, " he said.

"We've been trying hard with Endemol (the show's producers) to find a solution but it's clear that after 12 consecutive days of poor ratings, it's simply not winning over its target audience," he continued.

"The programme was stopped on Thursday and there'll be no weekly prime time show on Friday because that would be pointless."

While that might be the official version, there's no getting over the controversy that has surrounded the show especially after Michèle Cotta openly criticised it.

She's a former president of the television and radio watchdog le Haute Autorité de la communication audiovisuelle - the predecessor of Le Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel.

And she was also a member of Endemol's ethic committee - until she resigned earlier this week.

"I like reality TV when it's programmes such as Fear Factor or Koh Lanta because they give a voice to people who are not known," she said.

"But in Carré Viiip the candidates take part to make themselves 'known' at any cost and that's just not one of the values I hold to be important."

There was of course the case of M6 cancelling Trompe-Moi si tu peux (Cheat on me if you dare) in July last year before the programme aired because one of the candidates had committed suicide.

But TF1's decision marks the first time a show using the format of cutting of candidate from the outside world has been stopped in such a manner.

It's proof that someone, somewhere at TF1 has good judgement - although perhaps real praise could only have been heaped on the channel had it decided in the first place not to schedule such a pile of rubbish.

Sadly while Carré Viiip has bitten the dust, it doesn't look as though it'll herald the end of reality TV in France.

Secret Story is still scheduled to return for a fifth series later in the year.

France's tale of two Misses

Côte d'Ivoire might have two presidents at the moment but France has double trouble of a different sort.

The country has two newly-elected national beauty queens.

All right so the comparison might be more than a little inappropriate, but you could be excused for thinking that the world had been turned on it head somewhat (in France) given the amount of radio and television airtime that have been devoted to last weekend's election of Miss France and the rival Miss Nationale.

Perhaps a sign that someone was listening and watching the wrong programmes.

On Saturday more than 6.8 million viewers tuned in to TF1 to watch 19-year-old Laury Thilleman, Miss Bretagne, crowned Miss France 2011.

Miss France 2011, Laury Thilleman (screenshot from BFM TV)

After a jury headed by actor Alain Delon had, with the help of the viewing public, whittled down the 33 regional candidates to just five finalists, it was left to those at home watching to cast their votes.

And Thilleman, a keen surfer and former volleyball player (yes you can learn a lot from listening to the seemingly endless round of interviews that followed her election) who in the future apparently wants to "pursue a career in the fields of communications or audio-visual" (in other words TV - don't they all?) was the public's choice with 35 per cent of the vote.

She'll now go on to represent France at the Miss World and Miss Universe competitions.

Meanwhile on Sunday it was the turn of another 19-year-old, Barbara Morel, Miss Provence, to be crowned Miss Nationale 2011, a rival contest launched this year by the former organiser of Miss France, Geneviève de Fontenay.

Miss Nationale 2011, Barbara Morel, being interviewed on Europe 1 national radio (screenshot from Marc-Olivier Fogiel's morning show)

No mass audience for Miss Nationale as it wasn't transmitted on any of the major channels.

And even though the public had been able to choose which of the 25 regional representatives would be selected to appear among the final seven by voting online ahead of Sunday evening's decision, the choice of the eventual winner was left to a jury of seven.

Although Morel's turn to face the microphones came the day after her election, the real interest was focussed unsurprisingly on the woman who accompanied her, Geneviève de Fontenay.

She had been the doyenne of French beauty pageants for several decades and until earlier this year had been at the heart of the competition's committee.

After a very public falling out with official organisers, the Dutch TV production company Endemol, the 78-year-old set up her own rival pageant.

"We've achieved a lot," she said during an interview with Europe 1 national radio.

"There were times during the run-up to the final when I had been a little worried."

But the 78-year-old would not be drawn on the future of the competition (or its real value come to that).

"I hope there'll be another one," said the 78-year-old

"If I started, it's obvious I want to continue but sometimes in the morning you don't know what's going to happen in the evening."




Geneviève de Fontenay : "On revient de loin"
envoyé par Europe1fr. - Regardez les dernières vidéos d'actu.

Miss France - Miss Ile de France, when third place finishes first

Not a lot seems to be going right for the organisers of this year's Miss France.

At least not as far as determining who's going to represent the region of Ile de France in the beauty pageant this weekend.

After the resignation of the region's first-placed Miss and the disqualification of her runner-up, the area surrounding the French capital will now be represented by its third choice beauty.

Bikini-clad contestants for Miss France 2011 - screenshot from TF1 video

Put aside for the moment the confusing peculiarity that there will be two contests organised this year.

There's the official one by the Dutch TV production company Endemol which holds the rights to the trademark and that's the one viewers will be able to watch on TF1 on Saturday December 4.

Meanwhile a rival pageant run by the lady with the hat, Geneviève de Fontenay who, after donkey's years of organising it had a mighty falling out with Endemol and set up her own "label" so-to-speak, and her "girls" will be "strutting their stuff" a day later away from the glare of national TV.

Forget how much ink column writers have gleefully spilt over the potential string-pulling that could go on around two of the candidates because they have "connections".

Miss Rhône-Alpes, 21-year-old Elise Charbonnier, is the niece of the former international footballer Lionel Charbonnier. Who? Oh yes, the third choice goalkeeper in the squad that won the World Cup in 1998.

And Miss Normandie, Juliette Polge, is the great-niece of the former French president, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, who is reported to be "delighted" over the participation of the 22-year-old.

Take a deep breath and consider the trials and tribulations of who'll be representing the Ile de France region (that's the area around Paris).

A little bit of background before you plunge into the murky waters as to which girl the region will be sending to join the other 32 in Caen at the weekend.

In their infinite wisdom, the organisers decided that last year's Miss Paris, Kelly Bochenko, would be the last lass to represent the French capital after she posed for saucy pictures of a "pornographic nature" in the monthly magazine Entrevue.

Harsh perhaps as it was certainly not the first time (and doubtless not the last) that a contestant's past, present or future caught up with her.

Undeterred, Bochenko went on to make a name for herself by appearing in that cultural spectacle that was la Ferme Célébrités en Afrique (the French version of The Farm - produced by.....you guessed it...Endemol) and later revealing that she'd had a boob job and now "Felt closer to her ideal of what a woman should look like."

Are you still awake?

Right back to this year's Miss France and the problems surrounding Miss Ile de France.

Initially it was to have been Pauline Darles. The 22-year-old won her passage to the finals back in October.
But she decided to quit while the contestants were going through their paces in the Maldives because she reportedly didn't "appreciate the organisation and spirit" of the competition.

Up stepped her replacement Jessica Muzaton, who was quite literally flown in to fill her shoes.

But horror upon horrors, just as she was getting into her stride it was revealed that the 22-year-old had previously modelled sexy lingerie in a show which took place in a Paris night club last year, according to the national daily Le Parisien.

In case you haven't realised by now each candidate must declare when signing up for the regional competitions that she has never posed for erotic photos or taken part in racy video and the like.

Muzaton had fallen foul of the same regulation that had got Bochenko, Valérie Bègue (Miss France 2008) and Lætitia Bléger (Miss France 2004) among others into hot water.

So now it'll be Sabine Hossenbaccus, who finished third in the competition to find Miss Ile de France election who'll be representing the region in Caen at the weekend to find a successor to Malika Ménard.

Unless, of course, she has a skeleton or two in her cupboard.

Election de Miss France 2011 - les Miss se mettent au vert