It is an affair which marked the history of the Fifth Republic. In 2014, when he had been President of the Republic for almost two years, François Hollande was photographed driving a scooter with Julie Gayet on board. More than ten years later, the famous scooter is still talked about. As reported franceinfo, this Thursday, April 4, the vehicle will in fact be sold at auction, on May 26, at the Château d’Artigny, in Indre-et-Loire. As a reminder, it is a gray Piaggio, with three wheels, 125 cm³, having driven 34,000 kilometers and which was “used by President François Hollande to join, incognito, the actress Julie Gayet, rue du Cirque, on New Year’s Day 2014”, said the Rouillac house, which will manage the sale. “François Hollande’s scooter entered the category of legendary vehicles in January 2014, as it tells the French the story of a man like any other and of a nation torn between its desire for power and reality. of its declassification”, continued the organizer.
Guest on the set of C to you, broadcast on France 5 this Thursday, April 4, the former head of state reacted to the news. After revealing images of the scooter’s new owners who explained its history, Lorrain Sénéchal asked François Hollande what this vehicle meant to him. To which the politician replied: “I’ve always had scooters, but this was the last one. It’s even more valuable.” Amused by the images of his old scooter, François Hollande revealed with humor that he would try to follow in its footsteps. “I will follow the career of this scooter in the various auctioneer sales carefully to see if, in some way, it increases in value”he indicated.
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François Hollande on a scooter: the photographer tells the behind-the-scenes scoop
During an exchange with the media Marianne, published on August 14, 2020, Sébastien Valiela, the man behind this “historic photo” of the former president with Julie Gayet, went behind the scenes of this scoop which caused a lot of noise. After discovering the location of the secret meetings of François Hollande and Julie Gayet, he installed an automatic box in the building opposite in order to monitor their comings and goings. “It’s barely credible, but back from vacation, at the beginning of January, the morning when I come to inspect my device near the window, Hollande, right in front, comes out with his helmet on his head. I hid like I “I could. If he had seen me, it was over…” he remembered, before adding: “That morning, I couldn’t take a photo, but I understood the trick.“ To immortalize this moment, he had a sedan installed on rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré, which he joined the next day to take the famous photo.
Article written in collaboration with 6Medias.
Photo credits: Capture – France 5