Dwarves, chastity belts and why Pippa’s missing the one man who could rein her in
By Catherine Ostler
WE WILL have to wait until this October to see whether cavorting dwarves, burlesque strippers bursting out of giant cakes and aristocratic Frenchmen wearing dog leads make it into Pippa Middleton’s forthcoming party manual, Celebrate. Though no one can say she’s not conducting her research thoroughly.
For what other reason can it have seemed a good idea for the remaining Miss Middleton to have gone to a very risque fancy- dress party last Friday in Paris dressed as a sexy Marie Antoinette-meets-benny-hill’s-angel?
Not only that, she then allowed herself to be photographed sitting on the edge of a fake throne as part of her host’s party harem at the party, where £125 bottles of Roederer champagne were flowing freely — and where a provocatively dressed young woman wearing a metal chastity belt (and little else) made sparks fly by striking an industrial anglegrinder against it.
In retrospect, it wasn’t that brilliant an idea, either, for the sister-in-law to our future king to be grinning kittenishly as the floppy-haired French friend who drove her to the Gare du Nord to catch the Eurostar the next day waved a (possibly real) gun around in the street.
But I suspect it was English politeness that stopped her from telling the silly boy to put it away.
Or just lack of energy — she didn’t leave the party until 6am.
Despite a spate of recent shootings in France, it is unlikely the police will get too excited by the prospect of punishing Pippa. Sitting next to a posh idiot isn’t a crime, even in France.
Until all the unfortunate gun, dwarf and dog-lead photographs emerged, it looked as if Pippa was having a rather wonderful, ego boosting Paris- in- the- Spring weekend, holding hands with three very friendly Frenchmen: her party host, the Vicomte Arthur de Soultrait, who was turning 30; his dark-haired, dashing little brother, the Vicomte Marcy; and the equally eligible restaurateur and TV producer Antoine de Tavernost.
Just the sort of chaps, in fact, she might like to take home to Bucklebury to meet Mummy. When Pippa was at Edinburgh University, she was known for being queen of the ‘castle crew’, the lively group of Sloaney students who went to nearby castles every weekend and played raucous games, of which she was frequently ringmaster.
Now, it seems, the ever-resourceful Pippa has developed her very own ‘ chateau crew’ of young, landed Frenchmen.
Though original ‘ castle crew’ member George (Earl) Percy — the heir to Alnwick Castle — was with Pippa, Wills and Kate on the ski slopes this month, Pippa clearly feels there is no harm in him and his ilk having a little Gallic competition.
Particularly because, despite her tantalisingly close friendship with George — eco entrepreneur and future Duke of Northumberland — he really is just a friend.
This leaves 28-year-old Pippa very much available, and very much open to the idea of a quick hop over to Paris for a party thrown by a young vicomte.
Even a Middleton pushing 30 cannot spend her entire time on holiday with her parents — as she did in Courchevel the other week —no matter how generous and adored they are.
And this young Vicomte Arthur — though he wears clothes that don’t fit, throws somewhat louche parties and appears to be delighted if the paparazzi roll up to snap VIP guests at his events — is also an entrepreneur of the sort beloved by the Middletons.
His company Vicomte A — originally backed by his aristocrat father Eric, who lives on a sprawling estate in Burgundy, where he breeds horses — is a cheaper version of Ralph Lauren: clothes for international gilded youth, including £100 polo shirts and £350 jackets.
Intriguingly, given the recent publicity, Vicomte A is soon to open a stand- alone boutique in the King’s Road in West London — very near the flat Pippa shares with her brother James — so the publicity of the past 48 hours certainly won’t be irritating to him.
In interviews about his company,