Who was Bernard Tapie? True story of Netflix’s Class Act

The synopsis continues: "Throughout the seven episodes, Laurent Lafitte will step into the shoes of Bernard Tapie, exploring his rise and fall."

But just who was Bernard Tapie and how closely does the series follow real life? Read on for everything you need to know about Class Act and Bernard Tapie.

Is Class Act based on a true story?

Sort 0f. Class Act has been billed as a "fictionalised biopic" of Bernard Tapie, telling the life story of the French businessman, politician, actor, singer and TV host through a fictional lens.

That means that the story told in the series will not strictly follow real-life events - a decision which has stirred up some controversy.

Before his death, in 2021 Tapie told Nice-Matin that he was opposed to the series, saying: "Doing it without asking for my agreement in principle is not very good."

Meanwhile his widow Dominique Tapie told RTL: "The person who made this series came to see Bernard and he told him 'No, if someone is going to tell my story, it will be my son Laurent'. And there you have it… No comment."

Star Laurent Lafitte defended the series, reportedly told BFM TV: "As long as we are not defaming, we have the right, in France, to tell the life story of a public figure. However, I can understand concerns about respecting his memory.

"It will be a biopic about the man, with a strong subjective element. It’s our perspective on his journey. As soon as the idea came up, I informed him because I thought it was a good thing to do. But we didn’t seek his approval or opinion."

Who was Bernard Tapie?

Bernard Tapie was born in Paris in 1943 to a refrigeration engineer and a nurse. He started his career selling televisions, while at night he performed as a crooner. He later became known for recovering bankrupt companies, before reselling them for millions.

In 1964 he married Michèle Layec with whom he had two children, Nathalie and Stéphane. Tapie and Layec later divorced.

He had made a fortune by the time he was 30. He entered other pursuits, holding a major stake in newspaper La Provence and owning the cycling team La Vie Claire, which won the Tour de France twice, in 1985 and 1986.

He also owned football club Olympique de Marseille between 1986 and 1994, taking them from 17th place in the French championship to winning the Champions League six years later.

In 1987, Tapie married Dominique Mialet-Damianos, with whom he had two children, Laurent and Sophie.

He entered politics in the 1980s, being elected as an independent MP in 1989 and serving as urban affairs minister in President François Mitterrand’s cabinet. He was re-elected in 1993, this time as a member of the left-wing Mouvement des Radicaux de Gauche, which he had become head of.

In 1993 he sold his majority stake in sports company Adidas to a group of private investors. At the time, the company was seen to be ailing, and he sold it to avoid any conflicts of interest with his political career.

When Adidas was sold a year later for more than double the price, Tapie sued Crédit Lyonnais bank, claiming it had deliberately undervalued Adidas. He was awarded €403m in damages and interest in 2008, to be paid from public funds, but in 2015 an appeal court ordered Tapie to pay back the money with interest. The case went back and forth between judgments and appeals for years.

Tapie became an MEP in 1994, but had to give up politics because of legal issues. The first of these was that, in 1995, it was revealed that Tapie had offered rival team Valenciennes a bribe to underperform in a league game, hoping to keep Olympique de Marseille ready for the Champions League final. He was sentenced to two years in prison, including 8 months non-suspended and three years of deprivation of his civic rights.

After he was released, Tapie was banned from participating in politics and football, so he instead became an actor, appearing in films such as Hommes, Femmes, Mode d’emploi, series including Commissaire Valence and plays including a production of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

Tapie was convicted of tax fraud twice, once in 1997 when he was sentenced to 18 months, of which 12 months were suspended, and then in 2005, for which he was sentenced to three years in prison, 28 months of which were suspended. Both sentences were set against the eight months he had already served, so he did not return to prison.

Tapie was diagnosed with stomach cancer in 2017 and died four years later in 2021.

Class Act is available to stream on Netflix now. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

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