Dip into Joan Collin’s Côte d’Azur

No one does French Riviera glamour with more self-assurance than Dame Joan Collins. Despite being a British National Treasure, she has owned a home near the resort of St Tropez for more than 25 years, and spends three months of each year there.

Her love of the Côte’ d’Azur’s starriest town goes back way further, however. Holidaying as a teenager, she observed its last days as the arty Mediterranean port where painters such as Paul Signac and Henri Matisse had found inspiration. Its intoxicating atmosphere had been described by French author Colette, who wrote of “the scent of eviscerated melons, nougat and sea urchins”.

St Tropez in the 1930s

The fashionable set had been drifting in from the Med since the 1920s - Coco Chanel and Edward and Wallis Simpson were all fans. But it was in the 1950s that St Tropez tranformed into an A lister’s playground, thanks to Brigitte Bardot’s bombshell performance as ‘a girl made to destroy men’ in the 1956 movie And God Created Woman. Filming took place over several months around St Tropez’ port and beaches. In between scenes Bardot lazed on the white sand in a bikini - an item of clothing considered so outré that it was illegal elsewhere in France. The result was an international sensation. Soon the port was chocker with yachts, the streets lined with sports cars.

Supercar in St Tropez. Image: Tom Wolf, Wikimedia Commons

And 65 years later it is still, Dame Joan told the Daily Mail, “an idyllic paradise where hedonists reign and wealth and beauty conquer all.”

Dame Joan’s Instagram account - and of course papparazzi shots - show her posing on board a super-shiny yacht in shorts and Chanel cap and strolling the cobbled, apricot-painted streets in a gold-embellished sundress, her husband Percy and bags of designer shopping at her side.

Refreshingly, she’s always been happy to share her pick of the hot spots - which range from rustic Provençal to iconic Riviera chic. Since they are evergreen recommendations that combine to tell the story and define the allure of the area, it’s well worth compiling a short list of them.

Visit in September when the crowds have thinned, she advised readers of The Telegraph newspaper. And head immediately to the port area where Sénéquier is '“perfect for people-watching”. This red-painted cafe is a St Tropez institution. Originally a patisserie specialising in nougat, it was converted into a cafe in the 1930s using extra space from old boathouses. Every European creative from Jean-Paul Sartre to Pablo Picasso has hung out on its terrace facing the waterfront. It’s open all day into the early hours so works for morning coffee, lunch with friends, dinner or cocktails.

Photo: senequier.com

For lunch, a firm favourite is salad niçoise at celeb-packed Le Club 55 on Pampelonne beach. It’s a laidback Riviera classic, having “originated in 1955 when Roger Vadim and Brigitte Bardot were filming And God Created Woman in the town, and dined there regularly throughout the shoot”, says Dame Joan. Now, '“it is one of the most popular coastal restaurants in the world”.

The daytime-only club is run by Patrice de Colmont, who remembers the filming as his parents Bernard and Geneviève were the original owners. Having bought land on the undeveloped beach with an inheritance in the early 50s, they, together with Patrice and his siblings, lived a bohemian life among local fishermen. They began to cook casually for sunseekers, offering grilled fish and ratatouille served on picnic tables. In 1955 they launched it as an official business, hence Club 55, and were quickly adopted by actors, writers and musicians. Also known as Le Cinquante Cinq, its ever-lengthening celebrity guest list includes everybody from Tracey Emin to Mikhail Gorbachev.

Dame Joan’s alternative for lunch is Les Graniers, where tables are lined up on the sand at peaceful Le Plage des Graniers, a 15-minute walk from the port. Writing in The World According to Joan, she says, there’s “nothing so sublime as lunching whilst the sand crunches between your toes and the crystal water laps at your feet. It’s simple, down-to-earth and as far from the perceived Saint Tropez as it can possibly get.” The menu roams from Provençal squid to Black Angus steak and the blissful atmosphere allows you to deceive yourself that you’ve found an insider’s secret.

For dinner, it’s a trip into the hills to eat traditional French food at L’Auberge de la Mole. Motor around the countryside first: the mix of lavender fields, vineyards and stone medieval villages puts you in touch with timeless Provence, and a stroll will help you work up the appetite you’ll need to tackle the enormous meal ahead! The auberge itself is a smart double act: it serves as the village bar/tabac while luring in glamorous holidaymakers to their dining terrace. Diana, Princess of Wales, visited, Delia Smith rates its pâtés as the best in France and Dame Joan enthused to the Telegraph about its “incredible påtés, steaks and salads”. It has its own modus operandi: for a fixed price you choose your starter and main course, and a selection of pâtés, cheeses and deserts - think best-ever chocolate mousse, crème caramel - are presented at your table as additional courses. You help yourself to as much as you want, so come with a good appetite!

Point de la Douane, Ramatuelle. Image: Johan N, Wikimedia Commons