François Hollande threatens legal action over claims of affair with actress The sequence of photos go on to show the arrival of a man resembling Mr Hollande's bodyguard. A second man then arrives on the back of a scooter. His face is obscured by a black motorcycle helmet but the magazine claimed he was the French leader. Subsequent images from the following morning show the first man arriving with what Closer said was a bag of croissants, then the second man emerging, once again wearing a helmet, and jumping on the back of a scooter. The woman resembling Gayet then comes out and walks away. Neither Gayet or Mr Hollande have addressed the veracity of the claims, rumours of which have swirled on French gossip websites for several months, prompting the actress to file a complaint for breach of privacy last March. L'Express, a well-regarded news weekly, had last month reported that the presidential palace's security services were increasingly concerned by Mr Hollande's frequent "escapades." Julie Gayet and Michaël Cohen in the 2009 film Shall We Kiss? Gayet did not offer any immediate comment on Friday. The president's office issued a statement saying Mr Hollande "greatly deplores the invasion of his privacy, to which he has a right as any other citizen does." He was "studying what action, including legal action, to take following this publication," the statement said. French First Lady Valerie Trierweiler and President Francois Hollande (AFP/Getty Images) The Socialist leader has never married but has for a number of years lived with the former journalist Valerie Trierweiler, who is considered France's first lady. That romance was rooted too in its own intrigues, having begun while Mr Hollande was in a long term relationship with the Socialist politician Ségolène Royale, with whom he was four children. A lawyer for Trierweiler declined to comment. French attitudes to infidelities of their leaders has historically been more indulgent than those of people in Britain or the United States. It is not clear how the matter will play out on Mr Hollande's standing with voters, though he is already deeply unpopular due to his handling of the economy. French politicians have in the past been known to have affairs with little impact on public opinion, most notably former Socialist President Francois Mitterrand, who had a daughter with his mistress.