De Fontenay to run rival ‘Miss’ event

TWO rival versions of Miss France will be elected this year: the offical one and a “Miss Nationale”.

Following a falling out between TV production company Endemol, which runs Miss France, and “The Lady in the Hat”, Geneviève de Fontenay, who sold the brand to it in 2002, Ms de Fontenay has set up her own competition.

According to Ms de Fontenay, Endemol, best-known for Big Brother and similar spin-offs, has failed to maintain the good taste and traditional values she claims were hallmarks of the show. It was originally set up by her partner, Louis, and she ran it with son Xavier after his death until selling TV and commercial rights to Endemol for several million.

Until this year’s show, she continued to play a role, organising the local heats and helping present the final on TF1. However she resigned this year, saying that the fact that Endemol invited the former Miss Paris, stripped of her title after being found to have made soft porn photographs, to take part in one of its other shows, was the last straw.

Tomorrow sees the public invited again to vote for their favourite in an official competition on TF1, with veteran actor Alan Delon as jury president, while “Miss Nationale” will be elected on Sunday. The public can vote to pick seven finalists on the site of TV listings magazine Télé Loisirs at Miss Nationale until 16.00 today. The final, in Paris, will he broadcast on www.dailymotion.com

Ms de Fontenay said: “The French people will decide which they like best. They will recognise the one who will embody our real values and traditions.” However for Sophie Tellier, who runs Endemol subsidiary Société Miss France, the two competitions are “not comparable” and hers is the “only legitimate one”.

Endemol claim Ms de Fontenay is breaching a non-competition clause and is appealing against a court decision allowing her to run her event.

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