Le Monde, Libération, Le Point, Ouest France, Le Parisien… Most French media, national and local (especially those covering Brittany) reported on the storm which caused serious damage in Ireland and West Wales. Weekly news magazine Paris Match even created a picture slideshow, capturing surfers braving the waves in Langland Bay and Porthcawl, near Swansea.
OCTOBER OCTOPUSES
The storm was followed by a strange phenomenon, as up to twenty-five octopuses were spotted crawling along the beach of New Quay beach, in Ceredigion, West Wales. Ouest-France and Paris Match, among other French media, reported the facts. It has not been confirmed whether or not this behaviour was linked to the storm.
CALAIS JUNGLE & BREXIT TANGLE
What do British people bring back from their holidays in France? Wine of course, that they stop to buy in one of these massive warehouse superstores selling cheap crates of wine near the border, in Calais. In Calais, where the refugees' situation is still far from sorted. Little wonder Wales Online reported the story of a Welsh couple who, as they returned from a four-day trip to France to their home in Powys, Mid Wales, found a young 22-year-old man from Ethiopia hiding in the boot of their car. This was just a month before the Western Mail published the following piece, quoting humanitarian Annie Gavrilescu from charity Help Refugees:
In France, Le Monde devoted an article to a group of activists fighting another cause, that of stopping Brexit. Lawyers, lecturers, and business leaders joined force to contest the legality of the Prime Minister to enter the divorce process with the EU, through what they call the Article 50 Challenge. The group has taken the case to the High Court of Justice, and Cardiff-born, Lib-Dem, pro-EU campaigner Liz Webster is the official complainant.
Meanwhile, Macron's declarations on Brexit seem to gain momentum in the British media, including Welsh newspapers like the Western Mail:
A THOUSAND KILOMETERS
This is about the distance of the road journey from Lille to Marseille through Paris. Three cities which appeared in Welsh newspapers this month.
Lille, where the European Council for Rural Law Congress just took place, in the Western Mail's Country & Farming supplement on 31st October:
Paris, where women took to the streets, in the Western Mail on 30th October:
Marseille, where a knife attack cost the life of two women (and ultimately, that of the assaillant), in the Western Mail on 2nd October:
BUSINESS & EDUCATION: NEW COLLABORATIONS
BrandLab, a Welsh tech company "disrupting the fashion industry", has just signed Paule Ka. The French label joins the 275 others already showcased on BrandLab, based in Newport. As Business News Wales explains, the online trade show signs up to 15 labels a week, which makes it the fastest-growing online platform in the wholesale industry.
One major collaboration that will hopefully materialise is that of French transport giant Keolis and Amey, the British infrastructure service provider, in the bid to run the next Wales and Borders rail franchise and to build the next phase of the South Wales metro. Mid-month, it was already announced (by various Welsh outlets, and by Mobilicités in France) that Keolis was one of the four finalists. But on 31st October, Arriva Trains Wales, the German-owned train company which is the current holder of the Wales and Borders rail franchise, revealed it pulled off the race for good. As the Welsh media explained, leaves Keolis Amey in competition with Hong-Kong-based MTR Corporation and Dutch transport company Abellio Group.
The South Wales Echo's front page, 31.10.2017
This month also saw the birth of a new educational collaboration, between Welsh students at the university of Wrexham-Glyndwr, and French students from Alençon, Normandy, who prepare a degree in urban design and urban management. The project consists in creating and designing a building on a plot of land located in Wrexham, North Wales. Twelve French students will be responsible for writing the technical requirements, while their Welsh counterparts will sketch the building.
WELSH ARTS INVITED TO FRENCH FESTIVALS
From 3rd to 7th October, the city of Brest, in Brittany, welcomed Wales as the guest of honour of its 16th Festival Intergalactique de l'Image Alternative. As Ouest France explains, the festival's organisers put together a programme of twenty screenings - long and short films, documentaries, for both young and adult audiences, all dedicated to alternative Welsh cinema. Sorry to have missed this!
Patagonia, road movie directed by Marc Evans (2010)
The good news though, is that another festival chose to honour Welsh culture in 2018: the 46th Festival Interceltique de Lorient. As their website reports, the organisers came to Cardiff this month to meet First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones.
SPORTS: FOOTBALL v RUGBY, JOSHUA v TAKAM
The huge disappointment caused by Wales’ failure to qualify for the Football World Championships against Ireland did not go unnoticed. After the game, French daily newspaper devoted to sports L'Equipe published a short article underlining the key moments of the game, and evoking Gareth Bale's injury. Sadly, the article does not mention the Welsh supporters singing the national anthem a capella... Just for the thrill of it:
Oh well, at least there's rugby. As the Six Nations tournament approaches, Le Figaro devoted an article on the Welsh Rugby Union's decision to strengthen the selection criteria for its players abroad, in order to attract and retain talent.
This month also saw the home defeat of Toulouse, against Cardiff Blues, during the second round of the European Challenge Rugby Cup. While L'Equipe simply reported the results, WalesOnline provided a bit more context on the Cardiff Blues' background and new tactics.
Conversely, Clermont Auvergne travelled to Swansea to play a Champions Cup game against the Ospreys, and won. The results were reported by various media in both Wales and France, but one article, published before the game, stands out.
La Montagne, a French regional newspaper based in Clermont-Ferrand, reflected on the particularity of Swansea' Liberty stadium, which hosts both rugby and football games. The article, entitled “Swansea does not only rhyme with rugby”, does not question the Welsh national passion for rugby, but exposes the declining popularity of local rugby games as compared to that, rising, of football fixtures. The increasing competition of football games is indeed one factor, but there is more to it. As the article points out, the trend reflects a deeper crisis in Wales, where the lack of funding for local clubs brings poor results on the European scene, causing local rugby stars to leave their region.
Typically, Rhys Webb, who has played his whole career in Swansea, will join Toulon next season. His transfer to the French club has been the subject of coverage in both Welsh and French media, before and after Webb officially confirmed he was quitting Welsh rugby.
But this month, really, there was more crazy than rugby or football in Cardiff. There was British boxing star Anthony Joshua v Cameroonian-French counterpart Carlos Takam, fighting in the arena of the special transformed Principality stadium. The stake, for Joshua, was to retain his IBF and WBA titles, which he did. Before and after the fight, the event was generously covered by French media, from l'Equipe to Le Monde and a myriad of sports magazines. Thankfully, I don't think any reported on the five hour taxi queue chaos fans were faced with outside the stadium...