In Monaco right now, the talk is all about shoes. Not the shoes that people actually wear - which would be Gucci or Fendi - but the shoes that need to be 'filled' since the death of Prince Rainier III in April this year. Rainier was the longest-reigning western monarch of modern times. He spent 56 years on the throne of Monaco, outstripping even Queen Elizabeth II. In monarchist circles, this is called 'continuity'.

When Prince Rainier came to the throne in 1949, Monaco was nothing but a Rivieran 'backwater', famous for its casino, its trail of impecunious and exiled royalty, and the presence of Aristotle Onassis, who, for many years, held the lion's share of Monaco's state-sponsored gambling franchise. Rainier finally forced Onassis out, as he also stood up to Charles de Gaulle and made France understand that Monaco's independence would be defended, if necessary. He would have lost the battle, had it come to that, but it never did. A 'deal' was worked out, by which Monaco retains its sovereignty at the sufferance of Paris.

Read more about what Prince Albert of Monaco has to say about his illegitimate son at http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magazine/story/0,11913,1607810,00.html.