Why do so many falsely believe the wife of the French President is secretly transgender? 

For years now, Brigitte Macron has been dogged by fake rumours that she was assigned male at birth and transitioned afterwards. 

Such rumours might normally be dismissed as nonsensical title tattle found on the wilder corners of the internet. 

However, the rumours became so pervasive that Madame (Mme) Macron decided to initiate legal proceedings. 

On Newstalk Daily, Paris Bureau Chief for US news agency Feature Story News Ross Cullen explained why France's First Lady felt she had no choice but to confront the rumours head on. 

“There were two women, Amandine Roy, who is a spiritual medium, and Natacha Rey, who is a journalist,” he said. 

“[They] discussed and propagated this claim online and Brigitte Macron did take them to court. 

“She was awarded €8,000 in damages and her brother was awarded €5,000 in damages because the conspiracy theory said that Brigitte Macron was born Jean-Michel Trogneux - that’s actually her brother’s name.” 

Brigitte Macron marking the 75th D-Day Anniversary of D-Day. Picrture by: Planetpix/Alamy Live News.

However, on Thursday, a Paris appeals court overturned the verdict. 

Mme Macron now plans to take her case to the highest court in the French Republic. 

“It’s been picked up by conspiracy theorists outside France as well, in the United States,” Mr Cullen said. 

“It’s linked to these theories about the deep state; about state interference that you don’t know about, that you’re being scammed by the highest levers of government. 

“For example, you’ve been tricked into believing that the wife of the French President has always been a woman; that’s a scam that has been uncovered online by us and we would like to reveal to you now that she is in fact born, Jean-Michel.” 

The Trumps and the Macrons. Picture by: Alamy.com.

Although initially confined to the wilder corners of the internet, the court case meant the mainstream media was allowed to cover it. 

“The fact that she won that case also appeared in mainstream media,” Mr Cullen added.  

“Then the fact that the case was overturned and also Le Monde, which is one of the most esteemed daily newspapers, this week did report the news that she was going to be taking it to France’s highest appeal court.”

Despite this, it is not a daily topic and conversations in France’s many cafes and restaurants this summer.  

With the vast majority of those aware of the case dismissing the rumours as fake. 

“There’s no notion that people have been swayed, that they do feel that they were scammed about the gender of the wife of the French President,” Mr Cullen said. 

France’s media has often taken a deferential attitude to the private lives of its President and his family. 

Notably, Francois Mitterand kept his mistress and secret daughter hidden away from the public eye for his presidency, only acknowledging the pair publicly shortly before his death in 1996.

Main image: A split of Brigitte Macron and a trans flag. Pictures by: Alamy.com.