View from the Back
Ramblings of a retiree in France
Category: The House….
The House where Elton Holidays
As you all know, I love drooling over a bit of property porn and there’s certainly plenty around here, much of it owned by celebrities. Sir Elton John bought this lovely 1920s Belle Epoque villa, surrounded by the green spaces of Mont Boron (Nice)… Continue Reading “The House where Elton Holidays”
The House where a Princess lived
The French Riviera has oodles of property porn much of which I survey from the saddle of my racing bike. Sadly, some have walls and fences too high even for me. A lot of the properties have an interesting provenance in terms of who… Continue Reading “The House where a Princess lived”
The House where Hitchcock filmed……….
The kiss between Cary Grant and Grace Kelly in 1955’s To Catch a Thief was filmed in the gardens of this property in Saint-Jeannet. This has no doubt added to its provenance and price! To Catch a Thief was one of Grace Kelly’s final… Continue Reading “The House where Hitchcock filmed……….”
The House Where Hubert Lived
This is where I extoll the sun-kissed charms of the French Riviera’s heyday and inception as playground to the rich and famous, by examining the provenance of some of its spectacular property porn. Le Clos Fiorentina is one of the older houses on the… Continue Reading “The House Where Hubert Lived”
The House(s) of Givency
While I was researching tomorrow’s post, I noted that Christie’s auction house had recently disposed of Hubert de Givency’s truly splendid main residence (pictured below) and its wonderful contents. So I thought I would take a closer look at the famous designer too. The… Continue Reading “The House(s) of Givency”
In France with Ernest Hemingway
Yesterday, I wrote about a few of Ernest Hemingway’s drinking haunts in Europe, but there are way more places where he dallied here over the years. During his travels between Spain and Italy, Hemingway had a knack of sniffing out the best little towns… Continue Reading “In France with Ernest Hemingway”
The House where Downton holidayed
I haven’t yet seen the film Downton Abbey: A New Era but I understand that parts of it were filmed not too far from me at Villa Rocabella, a house with an interesting provenance. Invisible except from the sea, Villa Rocabella, nestled in a vast… Continue Reading “The House where Downton holidayed”
The House where Picasso doodled on the walls
There are many fabled South of France villas with storied histories featuring glamorous guests. But few can compete with the history or location of La Vigie, in Juan-les-Pins, which has recently come to market for a cool US$27 million. The property, set close to Cap D’Antibes,… Continue Reading “The House where Picasso doodled on the walls”
The house where Jean lived
What would you do if you invited someone to spend a week at your holiday home and he decided to redecorate it and then he decided to stay – indefinitely? Sounds like the stuff of nightmares, mine at the very least. But hostess Francine… Continue Reading “The house where Jean lived”
The House where Prince Albert II lives
I’ve written about many of the buildings in Monaco but not where the Monaco Royal Family hang out. So I thought I’d remedy that omission this week. Situated on a rocky promontory, the Prince’s Palace of Monaco (Palais Princier) is the official residence of the… Continue Reading “The House where Prince Albert II lives”
View from the Back 