Penelope, or Penny, as she is known, was born 51 years ago in Llanover, close to Abergavenny in Wales. --- One has to wonder what it sounds like when the French try to pronounce these Welsh names!
She married François Fillon in 1980, and together they have had five children, Marie, Charles, Antoine, Edouard et Arnaud - the latter having been born in 2001. Obviously a good match, as one of François Fillon's brothers, Pierre, later married Penny's sister, Jane!
The French are quick to point out what an excellent French student Penelope was at school -- and "out of the ordinary student" they say, and whose French is excellent -- "although with a Welsh accent". That must sound quite lovely -- a gentle musical tilt to her perfect French from the green valleys of Wales.......
The couple live in the Château de Beaucé, a sprawling 12th century manor house at Sablé sur Sarthe, near Le Mans, in western France.A local journalist, Florence Loyez, said: "Mme Fillon is a very natural and unpretentious woman. She's also very clever. I think she definitely has the intelligence and discretion to be a good 'second lady' of France. She'll advise her husband well."
M. Fillon, 53, is a close associate of M. Sarkozy. He is a handsome, eloquent man, regarded as more consensual and somewhat less abrasive than Sarkozy. As minister for social affairs in the government of Jean-Pierre Raffarin from 2002-05, M. Fillon is credited with steering a significant and overdue reform of the French pensions system through parliament. After he was fired from the government (following the rejection of the EU constitution by the French people), M. Fillon said that his reform was the "only memorable achievement" of M. Raffarin's term of office. As M. Sarkozy's prime minister, he will run the day to day government of France and will be expected to guide a large package of economic and social reforms through parliament within 100 days.
French prime ministers live and work at the Palais Matignon in Paris's seventh arrondissement, a once-aristocratic dwelling, larger than No 10 but much smaller than the President's Elysée Palace. The prime minister's wife and family do not always move into the Matignon but she is expected to be present for formal receptions.
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Chateau Lalinde : The perfect venue for your event
