Initially underwhelmed by London’s version of The Hills, I can now honestly admit that Made in Chelsea is an integral part of my week (or, dare I say it, life). Who can resist peeking into the world of the beautiful, privileged youth of that oh-so exclusive SW3 postcode, not to mention all the lies, backstabbing and love affairs.
With a full appreciation of Francis Boulle’s busy work schedule, I forgave him for arriving half an hour late at Baker & Spice, a quaint patisserie just off Sloane Square where we’d arranged to meet. Would this interview be as awkward and pause-stricken as the conversations between the cast members on the show?
To my relief, Boulle was exceptionally charming, very open and chatty, expressing his sincere apologies for his late arrival. In addition to this, with a natural wit and abundance of anecdotes, it is unsurprising that he makes such a successful businessman as well as an entertaining character on E4’s reality show, Made In Chelsea (MIC).
Having been privately educated at ‘The Oratory’, an independent all boys’ boarding school in Berkshire, Boulle had long aspired to Oxford. His fondness for the city was partly facilitated by ‘one of the [girls] at St Johns’ that he used to date. ‘When I was at school I had a girlfriend who was at Oxford so I used to go up every weekend.’
His deep-rooted connection with Oxford even extends to Emma Watson, who he was rumoured to have dated back in 2008. He also spoke at the Oxford Union last term. But despite his teenage endeavours, Oxford wasn’t to be – ‘I went to interview but got rejected’ – so instead, he migrated up north and went on to study Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh.‘I had a lot of fun at Edinburgh. I set up a successful business whilst I was up there.’
Refusing to let his Oxford rejection shatter his ambition, Francis allowed his entrepreneurial streak to blossom during his university career. I wonder how, with all his business creation, he ever made time for studying? ‘I went to lectures in the first year and then a few here and there in second year. I liked Edinburgh but I didn’t feel there was enough work. I had one or two essays a term and so I kind of thought it was a bit of a waste of time and money to be up there. Which is why I would have quite liked to have gone to Oxford, at least you feel you are at university whereas I don’t really think I did.’
With an instinctive flare for business, Boulle was heavily involved in the Trading & Investment club at Edinburgh, and even founded their commodities sector, but still managed to play a lot of polo. ‘I joined a few other societies but I was quite busy doing my own thing. I had a lot of fun and I have a lot of good friends from there.’
It was also during his time at Edinburgh that he was initially approached by the producers of MIC. ‘I was in my third year and I got a message from this production company saying that they wanted to make a London version of The Hills. And I sort of ignored it because I didn’t really have any intention of doing reality television and I didn’t want the attention.’
It was only once the freshly graduated Boulle had returned to London ten months later that he was asked to reconsider becoming a part of the show, ‘I got another message from them saying “We’ve got commission to do a pilot, would you be interested? There’s no obligation to do the actual show or anything.” I thought, “It’s something new, something different, and I am in a position where I actually have some businesses that might benefit from the exposure.”’
Along with Boulle, the original cast included Amber Atherton and Rosie Fortesque, both of whom had been spotted in Tatler’s ‘Little Black Book’ as two of London’s finest socialites. ‘We did the pilot…and I went away for Christmas and I got a call saying “it’s been commissioned so we start filming in January if you want to do it.” I gave it a lot of thought, you have a lot of things running through your head about what doors you’re closing and what opportunities you’re closing yourself off to. The tipping point for me was having this gut instinct that this kind of program would be a massive hit in America, and in business, being able to capture a market for free is invaluable. So I took a leap of faith.’
Speaking to Boulle on behalf of Cherwell for even just a short coffee, his networking agenda was immediately apparent. He joined the show to advertise his Boulle brand and is now in the process of promoting his new business project Fundmine to Oxford students (aka potential employees). But, while Boulle became a cast member as a business initiative, what were the other cast members incentives? ‘I guess everyone has their own reasons. People like Spencer wanted to be famous, and looked up to people in The Hills. Everyone wants to make money from it but people do it for different reasons from being a celebrity to promoting a business.’
Considering all the confrontational arguments between the show’s cast, it’s hard to believe that the main group on the show have been friends since they were 15. To what extent does he think the script manipulates real relationships? ‘We don’t have a script, it’s all our own words. We are told to go to a location, then sat down, miked up and allowed to get on with it. You have to speak your mind because you’re forced into it. Naturally, everyone wants to come off looking the best.
‘I don’t take it all that seriously, and I suppose I am a bit more ironic on the show than some of the others. I think people who take it too seriously are opening themselves up to a fall.’ This goes some way to explaining Boulle’s tendency to come across quite awkwardly on the show. In reality, he is very switched on.
After Boulle admits finding the work/show balance a little trickier than other cast members, I ask him about his current and future business projects, as he’s clearly an ambitious man, with multiple businesses at the age of only 23. His current focus is on expanding on is a company called Fundmine.com. ‘It’s an online agent investment community. It’s like an online dragon’s den where people and companies can raise finance to start up or expand operations.’
I ask if Fundmine is open to anyone, and he says, ‘Yes, anyone. If they have an idea and a business plan then they can put it up there and potentially gain finance to take it forward. It doesn’t have to be incredibly unique, you can take an idea or a business which is being run badly and do it yourself better: it’s innovation, not theft! Just sign up to Fundmine and see what comes of it.’ He makes it sounds so easy, and leaves me wondering whether I’d be better to quit while I’m ahead, ditch my degree, and try my luck at entrepreneurship.
So if Francis is only using MIC as a ‘vehicle to promote [his] businesses’, and with the show now broadcasting in America, Canada, Australia, to name but a few, I can’t help but wonder if there will come a time when he will leave MIC to further pursue his business objectives? ‘I’ll stay in the show for as long as it’s of use to me. I never wanted to be defined by something I haven’t created myself so I would put a cap on how long I would go on a reality TV show. I’ve been offered my own show a couple of times so I need to give that some thought.’
After spending some time with, and catching a glimpse of the real Francis Boulle, it’s evident to me that his sharp business mind and copious charisma are indicators of his further reality television potential. Fingers crossed ‘The Francis Boulle Show’ will be hitting E4 this time next year.
