It’s hard being so beautiful, I’m even hotter than I was 10 years ago & women hate me for it

10 years ago, Samantha had "written that I thought I was beautiful, which in turn meant other women often disliked me for my confidence."

In return, millions attacked her, saying "I don't find you attractive at all" or even suggesting she should be "bricked to death".

But Samantha, now 51, who even went on Big Brother following the piece, won't let her haters silence her - and yes, she says "women still hate me".

In a fresh piece for the same paper, she writes: "I still think I'm beautiful. In fact, I'd even say I'm more beautiful than ten years ago."

Insisting she doesn't regret the notorious piece, Samantha admits the backlash wasn't just from strangers.

She says: "Today, my circle of friends is smaller. Some were appalled by what I wrote and dropped me. Did I care? It stung a bit. But on reflection, I found out who my real friends were."

Samantha adds: "Have I turned into a crone whose bloom has faded? Sorry, no. When I look in the mirror, I still really rather adore what I see."

She says her husband of 14 years Pascal, 61, a retired carpenter, fancies her as much as ever, adding: "And apparently, so do other men."

Samantha explains how, where she lives in south-west France, she hikes most days and is stopped every week by one driver who admires her from afar.

The local bus driver, too, tells Samantha "my smile lights up his day."

She says: "Who am I to argue? Because I have definitely not let myself go. I haven't run to fat like so many women my age, thanks to daily yoga and meditation."

Just last week, Samantha says she was the delight of the owner of a local brocante (flea market).

She recalls: "(He) declared I was 'un rayon du soleil' (a ray of sunshine). He was falling over himself, complimenting my husband on what a catch he had."

Samantha says although she is "physically beautiful"; her main allure comes from her making eye contact, smiling and taking an interest in who people are.

Mocking her haters, she concludes: "Why don't you try to do the same? After all, it might help you become as beautiful as me."