Leo & Susy
in Prague & Berlin
August 2001

Susy with Gérard Depardieu - Prague - Czech Republic - 3 August 2001

When we were walking on the Charles Bridge round 10 PM
we saw a lot of people busy shooting a film.

We could not believe our eyes when we saw the famous
French actor Gérard Depardieu. But he was real!

Gérard Depardieu - Prague - Czech Republic - 4 August 2001

Just under the bridge at the southeast side
Gérard Depardieu and Christian Clavier
(both played in the movie Asterix)
were shooting the $ 80 million costing
TV movie Napoleon.

Napoleon will be on TV next year.

We were lucky, because Depardieu
does not have a nice reputation over there:


Angry Depardieu throws punches in Plzen restaurant

The French actor Gerard Depardieu caused a bit of a stir
on Monday, in a restaurant in Plzen, West Bohemia.
The actor, currently filming in the area, lost his temper
with an over-friendly local businessman
who was demanding a photo, and punched him in the stomach.
Mr Depardieu had delighted staff and customers
at Plzen's "21" restaurant by asking if he could help out in the kitchen.
He was busy preparing steaks when a local businessman
started taking photos of him in the kitchen.
He then put his arm round Mr Depardieu
and asked for a "me and my old pal Gerard" photo.
The actor asked him politely but firmly to remove his arm,
the businessman refused, and so Mr Depardieu punched him in the belly.
The incident has cast something of a pall over the atmosphere in the restaurant,
staff say Mr Depardieu hasn't been back since, despite having a permanently reserved table.
Mr Depardieu is in Plzen filming a TV series of Victor Hugo`s Les Miserables.
But Monday`s incident was more reminiscent of his latest film Asterix and Obelix,
which opened recently in Prague. Mr Depardieu, as Obelix,
spends much of the film munching on wild boar steaks and punching Roman soldiers.
Another fine example of life imitating art.

Radio Prague - 9 December 1999

This page was updated at Thursday 15 November 2001 - 03.00 (GMT +01.00)