Carla Bruni is new Marie Antoinette

Carla Bruni (right) may be popular with the French public, but one of the country's most influential political journals, Marianne, believes she is a "modern-day Marie Antoinette (left)". Under the headline "Enough is enough", it has lambasted the former supermodel turned chanteuse for her continual preening and showing off, which it sees as vulgar and damaging to national prestige.

Nicolas Domenach, the author of the article, wrote: "The president himself seems to be saying at every opportunity, 'Isn't she beautiful, isn't she clever, doesn't she sing well...?' And the public are getting tired of it." Commenting on the praise Bruni heaps on her husband - even claiming that he has "six brains" - Domenach wrote: "Pass me the sick bucket! Can we imagine Bernadette Chirac or Danielle Mitterand gushing such sugary compliments about their husbands?"

Domenach went on: "They are always pawing each other in public, which might be normal for newly-weds, but he is the president and she is the First Lady - and they are not exactly young! The endless photos of Carla cosying up to Nicolas have become nothing more than a vulgar charade. She is not so much a perfume but a very strong air freshener that we use to cover up unpleasant smells in public places." How very ungallant.