Pippa’s Friend Viscount Arthur releases statement about the “gun” incident

It was a series of photos that took the british media by storm earlier this week: Pippa sat in a car with a young man brandishing a  gun at a paparazzi photographer.   Thankfully, we quickly found out the gun was a fake – but the photos still caused a bit of an uproar, mostly due to the perpetrators appearing to show insensitivity to the recent shootings in France.  Commentators and Twitterers called for Pippa to either choose to associate with better friends, or be more careful in future!

© Viscount Arthur – picture with Pippa – This picture is from his Facebook page.

Today it emerges that Pippa’s friend (sat in the back seat)  and party house Viscount Arthur has released a statement about the photographs.  Here’s his statement in full, with thanks to E Online:

“Last Saturday I was in a car with Philippa Middleton, and we were being followed by paparazzi, dhe had been subject to constant and dangerous harassment by paparazzi throughout her time in Paris. The car was being driven by a friend of mine, whom Pippa had only met a few hours before. As a joke, my friend brandished a toy pistol in their direction.”

“Obviously Philippa had no idea that he was going to do that and told him to stop immediately.  She did not find it funny.”

Arthur’s brother Marcy also spoke to the Daily Mail last night:

Pippa is a very good friend of mine and this gun affair is very silly.

“It was a children’s toy that the driver had in his car. Pippa thought it was funny.

“It is fine in France to do that and the police are not investigating. In France there is no problem, just in England. You English think there is a problem, which is crazy.

“I have spoken with Pippa, she thinks this is all a joke and a funny game. We were just having a laugh. We are funny people, it’s what we do.”

CONFIRMED: Pippa’s party planning book titled “Celebrate” IS due out in October

Earlier today, USA Today published a story revealing that Pippa’s “long awaited party-planning book”will be called Celebrate and it will be published in October with Michael Joseph/Penguin Books.

I contacted Peguin and they replied!

Pippa IS indeed publishing a book, titled “Celebrate”, and it will be due out in October.

Here’s an excerpt from my email, direct from Penguin:

The lovely PR rep from Penguin also said she’d send us more details of the book within due course.  I cannot wait to hear more about Pippa’s book – and I’ll be first in the queue to get my hands on a copy in October.

What about you?  Will you be buying Pippa’s debut book?

The timing of this new is GREAT for Pippa, who was caught amid controversy yesterday!  Miss Middleton was sat in a car as a friend pointed a plastic toy pistol at a photographer tailing them in traffic, during a trip in Paris.  This story has made headlines in the UK and abroad, despite it seeming like nothing more than a jovial prank (the photographer explains here that it wasn’t a big deal and that he’d been having lighthearted fun with the friends all day.)  However, it is obvious to see why the photos may strike a nerve with many people after the very recent spree of shootings that occurred across France.

Pictures of Pippa: lunch out in Paris, “gun-wielding” friends & then back to London!

All photo links will open in a new window

After spending Friday evening at Viscount Arthur de Soultrait’s period costume party, Miss Middleton was snapped by French paparazzi in the capital city on numerous occasions over the following few days.

Here’s a quick round-up of news and links for those in need a quick Pippa-fix!

Firstly, here’s a nice picture of Pippa sat on the corner of her friend’s throne at the costume party she attended on Friday.  I’ve included it in this round-up because I hadn’t seen the picture previously and thought you might not have too!

Pippa embroiled in gun-crime investigation?

There are also plenty of photographs in the stories surrounding today’s big story about Pippa, who sat in a car while a friend wielded what looks like a gun at a paparazzi photographer.

The Sun newspaper ran exclusive pictures of Pippa in the car with the gun, which has caused an uproar.

As Pippa sat in the front passenger seat of the car, the driver turns around and points what looks like a gun at the paparazzi photographer following them on a motorbike.

Pippa doesn’t look too impressed in the photos, unlike her friends who are smirking, and indeed, I am led to wonder what the next photos in the set look like?  Would she be discouraging the driver?  Let’s hope so, because in France the laws are quite strict and if Pippa did nothing to discourage the driver, she could even face arrest herself.  The Sun printed the following from a source on French law:

“If the evidence points to her involvement, she will be prosecuted. Anybody involved in the illegal use of a handgun in public is liable to arrest and interrogation.

The source confirmed that if the gun was REAL, brandishing it in a public place is punishable by up to seven years’ jail “for all parties involved”

Even if it was FAKE the maximum jail term is two years. The source said: “Certainly if you were in a car and knew somebody was using a gun to warn people off you’d be liable to arrest.”

The Daily Mail also have further photos from both the dinner and the “gun” situation on their website today.

UPDATE ONE:  It’s starting to look like the sensationalist headlines about Pippa being arrested, or at centre of probe due to gun may be just that – sensationalised.  Sky News Correspondent Paul Harrison confirms on Twitter that Paris police told the network that “no complaint has been made” to them, and that there is “nothing to indicate an investigation that would involve Pippa Middleton”

Interested to see how this story develops, or if nothing happens and it fizzles away…

UPDATE TWO:  The photographer following Pippa spoke out about the incident: 

We had been following Pippa since the beginning of the day. She was hyper cool, we even spoke with her and her friends. It was a fine day, and the atmosphere was truly very relaxed. When the diver pulled out his plastic pistol, it was for a joke, to amuse. A few minutes later, when the vehicle had parked, I was able to touch the plastic weapon which the driver showed to me. It was possible to see that it was the kind of thing you would find in a toy shop.”

From:  http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/04/16/photographer-chasing-pippa-speaks.html

Back in London:

Finally, Pippa heads back to London and is photographed getting into a taxi with her luggage.  You can view those pictures here.

Pippa spotted Partying in France, wearing gold & purple period costume!

Usually, we follow Pippa’s style and blog about her outfits and then dozens of fans will attempt to replicate her look for themselves.  However,  I’m not sure that’ll be the case with her clothing in these latest photos from Friday night!

Image of Pippa partying © Viscount Arthur – from his Facebook page

On Friday evening, Pippa attended a party in Paris, wearing a silky bright purple and gold tunic  top, which was adorned with bows and floral embroidery.  Thankfully, her outlandish outfit was all in the name of fancy dress!  Her friend, Viscount Arthur de Soultrait, held a birthday bash in the French capital city at the exclusive Chez Raspoutine club.

Pippa wore her period costume top over some lace-trimmed leggings, while clutching her Lamb 1887 gold handbag.  To keep warm, Pippa put on her whistles leather jacket and she wore her gold snake print shoes, which I’ve been informed were from London boutique Austique.

Watch Gala.TV’s report from inside the club:

If you’re French, you may wish to read the report over at Gala.Fr.

Viscount Arthur de Soultrait is one of Pippa’s close friends, he is a fashion designer well known for his bright, preppy designs. Fun fact:  Viscount Arthur is designing the ties for the French Olympic team for the 2012 games.

See more footage and hear Pippa speak French here.

Pippa out in Paris wearing her cream lace H&M dress:

The Daily Mail has more pictures of Pippa from Saturday morning too!  She is seen walking with several different French men, including Viscount Arthur’s brother.  She wore her cream lace H&M dress, black Zara blazer, black Russell and Bromley boots and black croc Modalu handbag.

The newspaper appears to speculate over her love life and they call the men she is walking with France’s “most eligible bachelors”.

Pippa was also recently spotted skiing with her sister, the Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, her parents, brother and long-time friend George Percy.  If you haven’t seen those pictures, you can click here to view them.

Pippa completes Vasaloppet ski marathon

Yesterday, athletic Pippa managed to cross the finish line in the gruelling 56-mile Vasaloppet ski marathon, which she entered in Sweden.

Miss Middleton completed the marathon in seven hours, 13 minutes and 36 seconds. This means she finished 412^th out of the 1,734 women who entered.

Pippa, seriously, how do you still look so good after skiing in a marathon?

Pippa gives interview at Vasaloppet:

Pippa gave short interviews to a few journalists, both during and after the race.  During the race she told told Swedish broadcaster SVT she had prepared for the marathon over “a couple of weekends” and admitted she found it tiring.  She rated herself as an average skier:

At the end of the race, she told Swedish-language Aftonbladet Daily that the experience was “incredible”, and she completed the marathon “faster than she thought she would manage. “ She then said: “Now I’m going to rest and put my feet up.”

Skip to 1.37 to see Pippa with the press on ABC news (you can’t hear her speak, but you can see the attention she garnered from journalists!):

Pippa took part in the race with her brother James to raise money for charity. So far, the siblings have collected almost £8,000 for the charity Magic Breakfast.  You can read more about the charity and the race in our previous post, here.

New photos of Pippa training in preparation of Vasaloppet

Just a quick post for Pippa fans who missed the Facebook update last night:  There are new photos of Pippa training (with both her friends and her brother) for the Vasaloppet ski marathon, which will be taking place this Sunday 4th of March.

The photos are exclusive by Bauer Griffin, which means I can’t post them here.  You’ll have to click this link to view them on Bauer Griffin’s website.

In the pictures, Pippa can be seen skiing wearing in a red jacket and tight black snow pants.  In one photo she is relaxing with (probably a much-needed) glass of red wine.

Yesterday, Per Strid, the organiser of the Vasaloppet cross-country ski race confirmed the siblings’ involvement in the event:

We have been contacted by a person close to them who has asked us if we could arrange this.  I’s really fantastic that such well known people will take part.  It shows that our arrangements attract not only the most renowned skiers in the world but also some of the most famous personalities in the world as well.  Everyone does it because it’s a challenge and achievement to ski Vasaloppet.’

Win an Aruna Seth butterfly brooch!

As film stars celebrate their wins at the Oscars tonight, the lovely people at Aruna Seth have kindly decided to give one lucky Pippa fan the chance to win a prize of their own: one of their trademark butterfly brooches! Continue reading »

Pippa will ski in 56-mile marathon for charity

A few weeks ago I came across a donation page on a very well-known charity fundraising website that appeared to belong to Pippa.  It showed that she’d be braving the freezing cold temperatures in the Swedish mountains to ski in a 56-mile marathon, all in the name of charity.  I was unsure what to do with the information, reasoning that if Pippa wanted it publicised, she’d have her ways and methods of getting the word out there.  And if it was meant to be private, she probably didn’t want me writing about it, especially as things I write often get republished (the perils of having journalists following me on Twitter, hehehe)  Anyway, now I’m happy to share this information as I’ve seen an article about Pippa’s charity ski trip in The Express newspaper.  

About Pippa’s charity ski challenge:

Pippa is competing in the Vasaloppet next Saturday with her brother James.  The 56 mile ski-marathon is the world’s longest cross-country ski race that runs annually.  It looks like a gruelling challenge and we wish Pippa the best of luck!

The charity:

The siblings are raising money for ‘Magic Breakfast’, a small charity that fights child hunger through breakfasts clubs.  They deliver free breakfasts to thousands of state primary school children in the UK.  You can read more about the charity and what they do by clicking here.

Photographs:

Today, @OnRoyalToes  (a photographer on Twitter) posted an image of Pippa from a Sunday newspaper running this story.  In the picture, Pippa appears to be wearing skis, but I am unsure if this is a new picture, or cropped out of an older image (I recall seeing lots of pictures of Pippa with Will and Kate skiing in 2007/2008.) I believe it is an older image becase as Julie from our Facebook page mentions, that looks like one of Will’s Royal Protection Officers in the background.   I will try and get this clarified.  It may well be be a new image from @OnRoyalToes!  I’ll let you know if I find out!

In Geneva:

Our Facebook friend Simona showed us a tweet from English TV presenter and model Elle Dible who spotted Pippa flying out to Geneva 3 weeks ago on the same BA flight.:

This suggests Pippa is taking her training for the competition very seriously, as that tweet was from three weeks ago!    Another story from the Daily Mail today reports that Pippa flew on the ‘ski holiday’ with George Percy on the 3rd of Feb. They have an eye witness that said that Pippa and George were acting like a couple.

Pippa News: Round-up for February 14th – 19th

Bottom-boosting tights

Another week, another newspaper article on getting Pippa’s booty with some miracle cheat!  This time, The Sun’s “Woman” magazine asked a size 12 personal assistant from Hertfordshire to test five pairs of padded pants and tights on the market to see which pair gives the best shape.  The headline of the article is “How to get a bum like Pippa Middleton’s.”

The model tried a £5 pair of shaper tights from Asda, a £23 pair of bum boosters from Debenhams, a pair of £68 booty booster shorts from Spanx, some £14 control pants from M&S and finally, a pair of “tum and bum” tights from the 99p store.

The verdict?  It was the £5 pair of Asda tights that came up the winner!  I live near an Asda, so I’ll have to give these a try and let you know my verdict too!

Bookies odds:

According to this article, William Hill have given Pippa Middleton and Earl George Percy the odds of 3/1 to announce an engagement first out of a batch of other celebrity couples.  Interesting, considering that nobody knows if they’re a couple or just friends since Pippa reportedly split from Alex Loudon back in October/November. They also gave the Earl 33/1 odds of proposing on Valentine’s Day.

Temperley London at London Fashion Week:

Pippa attended Temperley’s spring catwalk show back in September, but was noticeably absent at the AW/12 show  yesterday.

About the 2012 collection, Alice Temperley told London Fashion Week that her inspiration came from “Paintings and portraits from the beginning of the Renaissance movement, rich damask textures, tapestries and wallpapers with ornate jewel-tone colour palettes and elaborate gilt carvings and sculpture.”

Here’s Alice Temperley’s mood board from  LFWDaily.com:

You can browse through photos of the Temperley London AW/12 collection by clicking here.

Modalu Pippa bag in Mint

It looks like the Modalu Pippa bag will soon be available in this lovely spring time mint colour, our Facebook friend Veronica shared the bag with us, after noticing that it’s ‘coming soon’ on the Canadian Town Shoes website.  Here’s a look at the bag:

The bag will be available from here soon for $235 CAD.

Win an Alice by Temperley Panthera Scarf:

If you haven’t already, make sure you remember to enter JulesB’s competition to win an Alice by Temperley scarf, worth £55.  Of course, dedicated Pippa followers will remember this is the monochorme leopard print scarf Pippa has worn on several occasions.  Click the image to enter:

Aruna Seth competition: coming soon!

Pippa’s shoes from the evening do of the royal wedding and her recent black bag were both by designer Aruna Seth, as you may well remember!  We’ve paired with Aruna Seth to run a competition that will be starting next week, so remember to come back and visit so you don’t miss out on a FANTASTIC prize.

• Visit Aruna Seth’s website.

Win Pippa’s Temperley Panthera Scarf

Calling all fans of Pippa Middleton’s Alice by Temperley black and white Panthera scarf!  Are you disapointed because you wanted to snag Pippa’s scarf, but didn’t manage to buy it before it sold out?  Or perhaps you couldn’t afford a designer label at the time it was in the shops?  Well, then you’ll be pleased to hear that you could get your hands on one for FREE!  Yes, JulesB are running a competition, giving TWO lucky winners the chance to win the gorgeous scarf for themselves!

The scarf, which is worth £55, is now sold out nationwide.  Entering their competition is really easy, just simply click here and fill in JulesB’s form.  The contest closes on Thursday 1st of March and the winner will be announced on the following day.  It’s also worth noting that you have to be over 18 to enter.

Here’s a reminder of Pippa wearing the scarf on several occasions, out and about in London:

Worn with:

Left: Purple Ralph Lauren jacket, Cashmere by Tania dress, Zara booties & Aruna Seth handbag.
Center: Zara Jacket, French Connection t-shirt, Prada handbag, French Sole flats.
Right: Cashmere by Tania dress, Prada handbag.