Ludovic Bonnafous, 29, aka Ludo Vigneron, participated in the 19th season of L’Amour est dans le pré, broadcast on M6 between August and December 2024. He recounts this experience, his “after” and his meeting with Julia Boureau.
How did you end up participating in the show L’Amour est dans le pré (ADP)?
I’ve been watching the show since I was little thanks to my mom. It had been three years since a friend signed me up to take part. The first two years I was too young and this third year was the right one. I always wanted to do this show because it had meaning for me and I wanted this human adventure. It’s fortunate to have been selected. And to find love, which is the most important. I am satisfied to have experienced this adventure rich in emotions.
Season 19 aired in January for portraits and from mid-August to early December. When was it filmed?
I was registered in the summer of 2023 and there were lots of steps to go through. The first shoot, for the portrait, lasted four days, at the end of 2023. It’s quite impressive, there are 6-7 of them and they film everything. In January 2024, the portraits of the candidates were released. Then we receive the letters from the contenders at the beginning of March. Two weeks later, it’s speed datingthen the week on the farm straight away. Then I had the trip in June. Afterwards, they let us free in the summer because it’s a lot in a short time. Finally, there was the filming of the report in mid-September.
In fact, you did not come with one of your suitors but had another announcement to make…
Yes, I had the chance to meet Julia who came into my life a little before the assessment. That’s also why I talked about her at that time. Our story was beginning and the goal was to give us a chance. Otherwise, I would have continued to receive letters. I suggested that she come with me to the set but the production refused.
There is an anecdote behind this meeting because the story with Julia could have been written in the ADP…
Julia was one of the girls who wrote at the very beginning, but her letter was not accepted by the production.
So how did you come to meet?
I took some time for myself from the start of summer and took the opportunity to reopen my social networks because I was launching my vintage of bottles from the Ludo Vigneron brand. At the same time, I looked at my messages and there was Julia. We got in touch like that and we wrote to each other a lot, called each other too. She sent me back her letter which I had never read. Afterwards, she came to spend a weekend, then gradually we fell in love with each other.
Julia, did you know the viticulture industry?
-Julia : Ludovic comes from a family of wine growers for five generations. Me, on my grandparents’ side, in the Loire, for three generations. It was a real common point because I know the wine industry. I don’t work in this field because I am an accountant but I know the constraints of this profession.
Ludovic, regarding the constraints and difficulties of the profession, do you use your notoriety today to send messages?
I try to be influential in a good way. There’s no point in making noise for the sake of making noise. I have lots of professional projects, the intention of creating a new sector which I am keeping secret for the moment. We have increasingly tough challenges and it is important to give hope to young people. Today, there are many themes to address: climate issues, culture, innovation… On my scale, I do what I can. I try to be an actor because when we appear on TV, we are highlighted and it is important to defend our colors and our values.
With this media exposure, has your life changed?
Daily life has not changed because we work. It’s especially when we change region, that people recognize us, come and say hello… But yes, the fact of being on TV and being known changes the way others see us. Whether positively or negatively. It also creates “a priori”, false rumors…
Notoriety and media coverage expose you to social networks…
Ludovic : Yes, and there is everything. There are a lot of people who are positive and who support us. But there are also many “haters” (hateful people). When we see the negative, sometimes we can forget the positive. You have to be vigilant about that. Networks have good and bad things.
Julia : Her mother was criticized a lot on the networks and this is still the case. It’s degrading for her. On TV, Ludovic’s mother came across as a very intrusive person who manages her son’s life when that is completely false. People don’t actually know her.
Today, you seem to have the perfect love!
Ludovic : We agree on the definition of love and loving each other. We are in the same search for love and we found each other! There are plenty of adventures that have linked us, notably the ADP markets throughout France. We have the chance to be fulfilled and to see our projects come to fruition. Julia left her native region (PACA) to settle in Fabrezan at the beginning of January.
Julia : I felt that he was the man of my life. The connection was there straight away, we were on the same wavelength. We lived the story of Love is in the Meadow but outside the cameras.
