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The Mystic and the Mayor: when politics and the supernatural collide

When the small coastal town of Agde in France is plunged into chaos, the world discovers what happens when political power and supernatural forces collide.

The local mayor Gilles d’Ettore wants to spiritually connect with his late father, so he seeks the help of professional mystic Sophia Martinez. However, the psychic sessions soon spiral out of control, with anonymous phone calls from heaven leading to an abuse of power that shatters the facade of small town serenity.

Presenter Anna Richardson and journalist Leo Schick unravel this story from the very beginning, investigating how our past can shape our actions, and vulnerability can be both a strength and a weakness. They explore how the actions of Gilles and Sophia propelled a sleepy tourist trap onto the front pages of newspapers all over the world.

Listen to The Mystic and The Mayor now.

The Mayor

Agde is a town of three parts, says Leo. “You’ve got the historic part: it's been a town since the 12th century. It has a Catholic cathedral complete with a turret and a viewing platform. Then there's the beautiful fisherman's village, with colourful houses that line the coast, and a harbour where fishermen bring in the catch of the day. The third part attracts a very specific type of tourist. It's known for its nudist village, and for being the swinging capital of Europe.”

But during the Covid-19 pandemic, the town became a lonely place. Sails on boats in the harbor remained curled up and unused. Swingers, fishermen and holidaymakers all stayed at home. With time to reflect, long-buried emotions came to the surface.

The town’s mayor, Gilles de Tors, grew up in Agde, and his family had been part of the community for decades. He worked as a policeman before getting involved in local politics more than 20 years ago and is seen as a kind, amiable leader. The older people in the town knew Gilles' dad, who also dreamed of becoming mayor.

In the 90s, his father finally got his chance and launched a campaign. Locals say he was the favourite to win. But he died before the election took place. Five years later, Gilles ran for mayor himself and stepped into the dream his father never got to live. As local journalist Jean-Pierre Amarger says, he kept his father close, even after death.

“Gilles drives around with his father's jacket in his car,” says Amarger. “And on election day, every time they announce results, he wears the jacket. That makes me think there really was a connection that was broken when his father died, and Gilles didn't necessarily cope with that.”

More than two decades after his father’s death, Gilles decided that he wanted to be close to him again. He wanted to speak to his father.

The Mystic

Gilles went to meet a professional medium working locally – a mystic called Sophia Martinez. She came highly recommended by her clients, who included police, doctors, and government workers.

In Sophia's own words from an interview with the newspaper Midi Libre: “Thanks to me, he was able to communicate with his late father. He experienced incredible things.”

Our host Leo Shtick, who is usually skeptical of supernatural phenomena, went to Agde to investigate. “I went to Agde and I met a medium there who made me really question my instincts,” she says.

Leo met Valérie Gruget, a professional medium. “When I told her I was skeptical and showed her a photo of my grandfather, her reading felt like guesswork – until it didn't.”

Valérie Gruget told Leo that her grandfather and grandmother had reconnected after death. She told her “I can hear Margaret” – correctly naming her grandmother. “It came out of nowhere,” says Leo. “I always knew her as Peggy, but how did she know that?”

After discussing her grandparents’ renewed relationship in the afterlife, Leo felt like she had learned something new. “It's more than likely that that was all just a figment of my mind,” she says, “[But] whether it's for real or not, it doesn't really matter because it's established as real in your mind.”

The Phone Call

Gilles continued to see Sophia throughout the lockdown. The town and the local government had made it through the worst of the pandemic, and they were slowly building back their economy. Gilles was working in his office one day when his phone rang.

“Who's calling me?” he said.

“I am the Archangel Michael.”

“What do you mean? Where are you calling from?”

“I am calling from the beyond. I have a message from your father.”

As Gilles later told Centre Presse Aviron, the regional newspaper for southern France:
“This voice gradually entered my daily life. He called me regularly and I asked him questions about the afterlife, curious as I've always been about these questions. His answers seemed completely convincing.”

However, the psychic sessions soon began to spiral out of control, with anonymous phone calls from heaven. Had Gilles been bewitched by Sophia? Is Sophia preying on a vulnerable man, or are her actions helping Gilles fulfil his need to believe?

To hear how the story unfolded, you can listen to The Mystic and the Mayor on BBC Sounds.

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