The building, they say, is unnecessarily big, will destroy their view, and will damage the Cobb. Meetings were held, letters were written, opinions were voiced in the local press. By Easter, a two- storey boat house looked set to be built at the foot of the Cobb, and on Palm Sunday De Cachard and Jack staged a somewhat forlorn but well- publicised protest on the Cobb."We had to beg the police to attend," says Ms Jack, 31. "I wanted to bring a bit of fantasy, of spirit, to the harbour." Since falling out with the town, he has been informed very bluntly that "Lyme doesn't give a shit about art" But initially it seems the town was happy to indulge him.

He painted mermaids on the boat of the RNLI helmsman, the couple befriended a few local boys who showed some artistic promise, and all was well - until the pair learned of proposals for a new boat house.Among the bohemian clutter of their studio, a file records every detail of their opposition. De Cachard's belief in his own mystical powers can have built few bridges."I could have done so much for Lyme artistically," De Cachard, 66, mourns. But Lyme - for all its artistic renown - is no Brighton, nor even St Ives. It is easy to see how his Neptune locks and regal robes, and herSeventies film star looks, might cause a stir among the boatmen of the Cobb Arms. Poison pen letters have instructed the artist to "F--- off back to France, you f------ frog No one likes you here.