In 1982, the English pop star moved to upper Lausanne in Switzerland to find a haven of stability and fade into anonymity. He purchased an early twentieth-century residence called the Château du Signal, which was built by a Russian prince and is decorated with woodwork and ornate faience. The house was used in the filming of Claude Chabrol's film Merci pour le chocolat (Thank You for the Chocolate) in 2000.

The singer was born in 1947 in the Brixton district of London. He began playing the saxophone at 13, influenced by the jazz music of the time. After a series of underrated singles, he began his career with Space Oddity and became known throughout England. Ziggy Stardust became the leading rock and roll group of the seventies. During these years, David Bowie repeatedly wowed and scandalized public opinion with his eccentric antics, his bisexuality and his relationship with Mick Jagger, lead singer of the Rolling Stones.

But this singer is not limited to rock music - he shows exhibits of the artwork that he paints at his Lausanne residence. He has also set up his own e-business, Bowienet. Respect for the private sphere in Switzerland is what enables him to work in peace and quiet: I'm left in peace here. It's the only place in the world I gladly return to. The singer loves Switzerland as much as he loves skiing and the Alps are only a few minutes from the shores of Lake Geneva.

The Château du Signal, a residence of over 20 rooms with an estimated value of 6 million Swiss francs, was sold and the event was covered in the London papers. But the star refuted the fact during a concert in Zurich, and affirmed that he still lived in French-speaking Switzerland.

The Man who fell to Earth
	David Bowie plays the alien of the title, who arrives on Earth with hopes of finding a way to save his own planet from turning into an arid wasteland.	DVD Amazon.com ($16,99) VHS Amazon.com ($16,99) VHS Amazon.co.uk (£12,99)
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
	After flirting with heavy guitar rock ("The Man Who Sold the World") and lighter pop ("Hunky Dory"), Bowie found middle ground on Ziggy Stardust. The creation of the Ziggy Stardust persona would live on well after Bowie shed the alien skin, marking the first rock concept album by a sexually ambiguous, artistically bent musician who confounded critics at every turn.	Amazon.com ($13,99) Amazon.co.uk (£11,99) Amazon.fr (140,37FF)
Bowie at the Beeb
	This three-CD set gathers together everything David Bowie recorded for the BBC between the years referenced in its title, plus a third disc taken from a June 2000 London concert for the famed British radio broadcasting company.	Amazon.com ($17,99) Amazon.co.uk (£14,99) Amazon.fr (214,50FF)
Hunky Dory
	Hunky Dory is the most pop-influenced of David Bowie's albums.	Amazon.com ($13,99) Amazon.co.uk (£11,99) Amazon.fr (140,37FF)
Let's Dance
	David Bowie returned to recording after a four-year break with this relatively clean-cut 1983 album.	Amazon.com ($13,99) Amazon.co.uk (£11,99) Amazon.fr (140,37FF)
David Bowie DERAM Anthology 1966-1968
	All 27 tracks, in chronological order, that Bowie released on Deram.	Amazon.com ($15,99) Amazon.co.uk (£7,99) Amazon.fr (68,68FF)