Separating Truth from Fiction: a Review of the Mini-Series “Tapie” on Netflix

Available on Netflix since September 13, the mini-series Tapie retraces the journey and the many lives of former businessman Bernard Tapie (played by Laurent Lafitte).

In order to disentangle fact from fiction in this fictional series inspired by authentic facts, AlloCiné invites you to look back at seven highlights of the program. Did Bernard Tapie really appear in a variety show alongside Michel Polnareff? Was he really a television host?

How many children did Bernard Tapie really have?

In Tapie on Netflix, our main character is first married to Michèle (played by Ophélia Kolb) with whom he has a little daughter, Stéphanie. After their stormy separation, Bernard Tapie rebuilds his life with Dominique (played by Joséphine Japy who spoke to AlloCiné). Together, they have a son named Laurent.

In our reality, Bernard Tapie had two children with Michèle Layec: Nathalie (born February 16, 1968) and Stéphane (born August 9, 1969). During his second marriage to Dominique Mialet-Damianos, he then had his other son Laurent (born October 7, 1974) and his other daughter Sophie (born February 20, 1988).

Bernard and Dominique Tapie, for their part, would have met when she worked in one of Monsieur’s companies. After problems with one of her bosses, she would have joined the team of the businessman seven years her senior. At the time, he was actually married and she was not available either… Their official union was therefore not immediate.

Did Bernard Tapie really visit prosecutor Eric de Montgolfier in the middle of the night?

Yes, the confrontation between Bernard Tapie and Eric de Montgolfier really took place. But the series nevertheless took great liberties with the way this face-to-face turned out.

First of all, the former businessman did not arrive by surprise in the Valenciennes prosecutor’s office, since their meeting was organized through his lawyer. But this meeting did indeed take place at night, at the request of Tapie who did not wish to be recognized or seen by the press.

The tone of the conversation was also changed. Shown as menacing in the series, Bernard Tapie was actually rather friendly, not to say charming, during his meeting with Eric de Montgolfier. The latter also clarified to our colleagues Marianne to have been embarrassed by the side “snark” et “mocker” of his portrayal in the Netflix series.

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Was Bernard Tapie really a television host?

You were perhaps wondering if Bernard Tapie was really a television host? Well the answer is yes! Although the Netflix series makes a change by renaming the program “Success”, while the real show hosted by the former businessman was called “Ambitions”.

In addition to this change, the scene showing Tapie attending rehearsals for his show while negotiating with the striking unions at his Wonder factory is obviously completely invented.

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Did Bernard Tapie really get married the day after OM’s victory in the Champions League?

Here again the truth has been largely reworked. Thus, Bernard and Dominique Tapie said “yes” to each other on May 23, 1987, six years before Olympique de Marseille’s victory in the Champions League final and barely a year after buying the club at the request of the mayor of Marseille.

Let us also point out that the Tapie couple’s wedding was held in small groups, in front of a circle of close friends aboard the yacht Phocéa off the coast of Greece (where Dominique is from, which the series never mentions).

No OM player was therefore present at Bernard Tapie’s wedding, and certainly not Didier Deschamps (who played at the time for FC Nantes) and even less the hero of the final Basile Boli (defender of AJ Auxerre until 1990).

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Did Bernard Tapie really want to solve the problems in the cities by organizing tea parties?

The appointment of Bernard Tapie as Minister of the City is entirely true. But the latter’s political journey has nevertheless been simplified, not to say caricatured. His idea of ​​organizing snacks for disadvantaged young people in the cities obviously does not appear in his plan presented in spring 1992 to Prime Minister Pierre Bérégovoy.

The series only briefly returns to this ministerial stint, strongly marked by the start of the legal cases which forced him to resign a few weeks after his appointment before a dismissal of the case allowed him to regain his post.

The conditions of his departure from the government are also completely fictitious. The series suggests that Tapie was pushed out by François Mitterrand himself. In reality, the latter’s mandate simply ended with the victory of the RPR in the legislative elections of March 1993 and the appointment of Edouard Balladur to the post of Prime Minister.

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Did Bernard Tapie really appear on a variety song show?

After his military service, Bernard Tapie was 23 years old in 1966. He managed to sign a contract with the RCA record company and published his first 45 rpm. He also decides to change the pronunciation of his last name, which becomes Tapy and which is called “Tapaille”.

He spends time with young singers with flourishing careers. Among them, is Michel Polnareff whom he beats during a radio hook with the piece Passport to the sun (The Green Berets). Unfortunately, Bernard Tapie will not find success in his musical career…

Did Bernard Tapie really launch the Cœur Assistance service?

After fearing for his father’s life in the series, Bernard Tapie founded Cœur Assistance with his collaborator Maurice Mességué. Their promise is to offer an emergency medical service within thirty minutes for a subscription. Unfortunately, because of a more than shaky organization, he becomes the target of the doctors’ order and ends up in court. He must close this company and he is condemned.

In 1974, Bernard Tapie created Cœur Assistance. Always chargeable, this service allows you to notify an ambulance in the event of a heart attack in a person using a box that activates an alarm. In 1976, a man who had subscribed to the subscription died because he could not be supported…

In 1981, he received a one-year suspended prison sentence for violating company laws and for false advertising. Indeed, Bernard Tapie invented having five ambulances when he only had two… The latter will nevertheless be amnestied thanks to President François Mitterrand.

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The Tapie mini-series can now be found exclusively on Netflix.

Discover the list of all the series currently available on the platform!