From the Guardian...

Rebellion in Sardinia: Italians shower rich 'louts' with water and sand in beach uproar after Briatore's dinghies alarm swimmers

Millionaires and Hollywood stars visiting Italy have been put on notice that they no longer own the beach after a group of celebrities led by Flavio Briatore, co-owner of QPR football club, were pelted with wet sand and showered with water as they tried to land dinghies on a crowded Sardinian beach.

Already victims of shrinking spending power and sky-rocketing rates for renting deckchairs, Italians have descended on their beaches this August in a surly mood, and the sight of the Briatore-led flotilla as it carved a swath through alarmed swimmers was enough to spark a near riot on Friday at the packed Capriccioli beach.

The Italian newspaper La Stampa seized on the episode as the start of a fightback against celebrities flaunting their wealth on the country's top beaches, stating: "From north to south, the rebellion against those who show off their money and power is growing."

The authorities also appear to be clamping down. Last week, Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones came ashore from their yacht at the Italian resort of Santa Margherita Ligure, the same spot where locals were kept awake in June by thumping music from Wayne Rooney's rented yacht. After failing to notify the coastguard of the names of all the members of the landing group, the captain of Douglas's yacht was fined £1,600 under immigration and anti-terrorism legislation.

Hostilities erupted in Sardinia when Briatore, the manager of the Renault formula one team, came ashore from a yacht to inaugurate his new restaurant, which opened on Friday just behind the beach and is close to his opulent disco Billionaire, a bastion of the super-rich.

Briatore and his new bride, the TV showgirl Elisabetta Gregoraci, were met with grumbling from sunbathers as they hopped off the first dinghy, rising to whistles and shouts when the Italian newsreader Emilio Fede climbed off the second, while "terrorised children wailed between the waves", reported La Stampa.

Yelling "Shame! Louts! Go home!", a mob formed to greet the third dinghy, attempting to push it back out to sea, as mothers filled their children's buckets with water to sling at the passengers and wet sand bombs were hurled.

The episode marked a tough homecoming for Briatore, who has enjoyed an extended honeymoon since his star-studded Rome wedding in June. "We are nice people and we get rewarded like this," Corriere della Sera quoted Briatore as saying after he returned to the beach to find out why his guests were being drenched. "I will close down everything," he warned. "I pay taxes, this is my right."

With his new restaurant designed as a lunch stop for passing mega-yachts, Briatore may be wondering how Arab princes and Russian oligarchs will react to lobbed sand. But a Billionaire spokesman hinted that all may be in hand: "This year we are opening the restaurant, but from next year we will manage the beach as well."

I think I'd be alarmed by Flav's dinghy.

and here I thought that Flav was a descendant of Gramsci.

Any chance signor Briatore was donning that lovely thong bathing suit of his at the time of the incident? You know, the one that's a few strategic nanometers short of an indecent exposure charge. Or a feet or three of fabric beyond it, if you ask me. The mere threat of catching an eyeful could scar a kid for life - no wonder people are taking action.

Those sand-throwing sunbathers can forget about any ideas about racing in F1.

Is this true? Did the angry mob really only yell "Shame! Louts! Go home!"

Its like the hardened gangland criminal getting arrested by the copper and saying "No Mr Nasty Policeman, i dont want to be arrested, and please please stop, your hurting my arm!"

I have no idea of which bathing suit you speak of.

They were promptly signed up by IPC Magazines to be the Melchester crowd in the next issue of Roy Of The Rovers.

OT:
What is dinghy btw?

I love Briatore describing himself and his entourage from the very modest and decent club Billionaire as being 'nice people'.

....and then the world!

Really?

Ah yes, I see.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinghy

I'm with the people on the beach. Especially if there were kids swimming when flav brought a dingy to shore.

Ignorance is bliss in this case:

I thought we already discussed this about a week ago. Isnt there already another thread on this?


EDIT... found it. It was posted in the Mosley/Dubai thread, 8 days ago when the incident occurred.

There is a civil rights movement who are campaigning for Italy's beaches to be opened up to the public without charge. At present a lot of beaches are privately owned and used for exclusive water-sports or else they are owned by local government who use them as a form additional taxation by charging high fees for their use.

@Perigee
Thanks, first thing I asked Google but didn't hit the right place.

i tell you what, any man of his age, who has the sheer audacity to to wear something like that deserves a medal

What is it, a money bag?

Eek...are we back to some kind of Mosely-esque kinkiness again? I understand this is quite popular among Germans particularly as well...

Jesus Christ! That is a Borat moment if ever I've seen one.
Nice people my arse. I presume dinghy actually means a superyacht's rigid inflatable tender, which would no doubt be powered by two 500 horsepower inboards, travels at 60 knots and casts the most massive bow wave you've ever seen. Like this...

Yes I posted that a week or so ago it's nothing new, just some local splashing a bit of water at Flav and his friends.



Here are some pics of Flavio on holiday , he seems to have good fun despite this "incident".

It's not nice but I can understand the anger of the people, especially in the context that Flavio will manage the beach as well next year.

At some, I predict, there will be actual riots. Where was Bernie? Next year pay all your Taxes.

Oh, sorry. I was following the Guardian story but hadn't checked the date.

... with a nice sharp pin

how dare they walk among the ordinary people?