Brigitte Macron’s cyberbully speaks out

A writer convicted of cyber-bullying the French president’s wife has told the Fame under Fire podcast he doesn’t regret it.

Bertrand Scholler posted an edited photo of Brigitte Macron in a swimming costume. Her head had been cut out and a man’s torso edited in.

He was one of 10 defendants in France accused of spreading false claims about Mrs Macron’s gender and sexuality as well as making “malicious remarks” about the 24 year age gap between her and her husband.

They were found guilty at a Paris court. Scholler was handed a suspended sentence of six months.

Speaking after his conviction, he said he was in “shock”, adding that the law which led to his conviction was a “nuclear bomb for freedom of speech”.

We also hear from the BBC’s Paris correspondent Hugh Schofield about the court case and what’s next for the Macrons.

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Host: Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty
Series Producer: Vicky Farncombe
Senior Impact Producer: Melanie Stewart-Smith
Production Coordinator: Helena Warwick-Cross
Technical Producer: Mark Burrows
Editor: Clare Fordham
Assistant Commissioning Producer: Rechmial Miller
Commissioning Producer: Adam Eland
Assistant Commissioner: Will Drysdale
Commissioning Editor: Rhian Roberts