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INSIDE FRANCE

Inside France: Sextapes, lunch, mayors and a Frenchmen problem

From sextape scandals and problems with women via French mayors and predictions of a new Revolution, our weekly newsletter Inside France looks at what we have been talking about in France this week.

Published: 15 April 2023 14:19 CEST
Inside France: Sextapes, lunch, mayors and a Frenchmen problem
Villagers of Lavare reenact the Storming of the Bastille. Photo by JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER / AFP

Inside France is our weekly look at some of the news, talking points and gossip in France that you might not have heard about. It’s published each Saturday and members can receive it directly to their inbox, by going to their newsletter preferences or adding their email to the sign-up box in this article.

Sex and lunch

There have been two scandals involving French mayors that have hit the headlines this week – one involving a sextape and the other involving lunch. I honestly cannot decide which of these two is more stereotypically French, but their prominence in the headlines does attest to the importance of the role of the the mayor in France.

One of the oldest roles in the country (dating from the years immediately after the revolution) their role ranges from city mayors who handle multi-billion euro budgets and a staff of thousands to village mayors who have a more hands-on role. Stories from village-dwellers in France include the mayor turning up with a chainsaw to clear a fallen tree from the road and taking part in animal rescues.

Talking France

We’re sharing stories of French mayors on this week’s Talking France, as well as addressing that crunch Constitutional Council ruling on pension reform, the €150 million tree-planting scheme in south-west France, French town nicknames and what you need to know about this year’s tax declarations. Listen here or on the link below.

Man problem

An MP from the far-left La France Insoumise party returned to parliament this week, after a very short suspension after he was convicted of assaulting his wife. Party leader, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, has been widely criticised for appearing to minimise the seriousness of the conviction and praising his MP’s “courageous” decision to stand down from a senior role within the party.

This brings back memories of Emmanuel Macron who, when criticised for appointing as his Interior Minister (the nominal head of the police force) a man who was at the time the subject of a rape investigation, responded that he had spoke to Gérald Darmanin “man to man” about the incident and was satisfied with his explanation. Darmanin was later cleared.

If we include Rassemblement National leader Marine Le Pen, who has always been extremely reluctant to say whether she supports a woman’s right to abortion (and consistently has urgent other business whenever there is a vote in parliament on the issue), that’s the leaders of France’s three largest parties (commanding 70 percent of the vote between them) who all appear to not really get it when it comes to women’s rights. 

Banner of the week 

I think two under-rated guides to understanding French life and politics are graffiti and protest signs.

They’re often funny as well as topical – frequently seen in Paris right now is “16-64 est une bière, pas une carrière”  – 16-64 is a beer [Kronenbourg 1664] not a working life.

But I love the sheer bonkers complexity of the below sign, predicting a new French Revolution on the basis that 64 (the proposed new retirement age) minus 49.3 (the Article of the constitution used to force the legislation through) equals 14.7, or July 14th, the date of the storming of the Bastille. Who knew!

Life inspo of the week

Let’s all get on board with this rather lovely priority list of things that people in France apparently want to do more of. Now, it may be that you don’t actually need to retire to do some (or all) of these, but really, who couldn’t do with a little more of each in their life?

Inside France is our weekly look at some of the news, talking points and gossip in France that you might not have heard about. It’s published each Saturday and members can receive it directly to their inbox, by going to their newsletter preferences or adding their email to the sign-up box in this article.

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INSIDE FRANCE

Inside France: Violence, QR codes and stuffed animals

From violent unrest in a French territory to the QR codes required at the Paris Olympics, via D-Day and weird taxidermy, our weekly newsletter Inside France looks at what we have been talking about in France this week.

Published: 18 May 2024 07:38 CEST
Inside France: Violence, QR codes and stuffed animals

Inside France is our weekly look at some of the news, talking points and gossip in France that you might not have heard about. It’s published each Saturday and members can receive it directly to their inbox, by going to their newsletter preferences or adding their email to the sign-up box in this article.

High tension

After a relaxed week with a double holiday and most of the country taking a break, it seems that the news has come roaring back this week – first a highly dramatic jailbreak that left two prison officers dead and a fugitive at large, then the worst rioting in 30 years on the French island of Nouvelle Calédonie which left five people dead, and finally a man shot dead by police while apparently trying to set fire to a synagogue in northern France. It seems that there’s barely been time to breathe. 

These three things are, of course, not connected and in the case of Nouvelle Calédonie have followed years of political and ethnic tensions on the Pacific islands.

But it’s not surprising that people feel a bit punch-drunk at this series of events. Already right-wing parties are attempting to make capital out of this ahead of the European elections – a favourite tactic of the far-right in recent years has been trying to portray France as in the grip of an uncontrolled wave of crime and violence.

While no-one would deny that France has crime and that there are problems with violence, the statistics do not bear out this image of a ‘lawless’ country’. 

QR codes

Talking of security, the big topic in Paris this week has been whether we need QR codes to get around the city during the Olympics, after the security plan for the Games was unveiled in detail.

For many people this will bring back bad memories of Covid restrictions, attestations and health passes – although once you dig into the detail of the Games QR codes you realise that they won’t actually affect all that many people.

The areas that they cover are limited and the most onerous restrictions are only in place for the week leading up to the Opening Ceremony. You can find a complete guide to whether you need a code, and how to get one if you do, HERE.

Talking France

We look at the QR code situation on this week’s Talking France podcast, as well as France’s economic reality, the quirks of the French health system and the new ‘drive like a woman’ campaign.

Plus John Lichfield talks about his involvement in projects to commemorate D-Day in his Normandy home, and why the 1944 landings still hold such a special place in French hearts. Listen here or on the link below. 

Get stuffed

But my biggest question about France remains unanswered – why is weird taxidermy furniture so popular? If you’ve spent time at a French brocante you will likely have come across stuffed animal parts made into a variety of items from coathooks and ashtrays to – as below – chairs or stools.

Answers on a postcard, please.  

Inside France is our weekly look at some of the news, talking points and gossip in France that you might not have heard about. It’s published each Saturday and members can receive it directly to their inbox, by going to their newsletter preferences or adding their email to the sign-up box in this article.

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