https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from France in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed British music star FKA twigs is to play Josephine Baker in a new biopic of the Roaring Twenties icon who became a hero of the French Resistance and the American civil rights movement. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260512/singer-fka-twigs-to-play-josephine-baker-in-biopic-of-anti-racist-legend Tue, 12 May 2026 15:04:23 +0200 singer-fka-twigs-to-play-josephine-baker-in-biopic-of-anti-racist-legend France's parliament on Thursday definitively adopted legislation to simplify the return of artworks looted during the colonial era to their countries of origin. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260508/french-parliament-votes-to-ease-returns-of-looted-art-to-ex-colonies Fri, 08 May 2026 14:56:05 +0200 french-parliament-votes-to-ease-returns-of-looted-art-to-ex-colonies American president Donald Trump has threatened to pull thousands of American troops out of Germany, with other European military bases potentially following suit. This is not an issue in France, however, which has no US military presence on its soil - here's why. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260507/explained-why-france-doesnt-have-any-us-military-bases Thu, 07 May 2026 15:48:52 +0200 explained-why-france-doesnt-have-any-us-military-bases In towns and villages across the country, the French will turn out on Friday, May 8th, to mark the end of World War II in Europe and honour those who died in the conflict. https://www.thelocal.fr/20230505/ve-day-what-happens-in-france-on-may-8th Fri, 05 May 2023 12:15:41 +0200 ve-day-what-happens-in-france-on-may-8th Deep below the surface of the Mediterranean off the French coast, the pincer of a remotely guided underwater robot delicately closes around a centuries-old jug lying near a 16th-century shipwreck. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260429/diving-robot-explores-mystery-of-frances-deepest-shipwreck Wed, 29 Apr 2026 17:17:38 +0200 diving-robot-explores-mystery-of-frances-deepest-shipwreck The tiny statelet nestled in the Pyrenees mountains that mark the border between France and Spain will be getting a visit from its French 'co Prince' this week – but what else is there to know about Andorra? https://www.thelocal.fr/20240426/8-things-you-never-knew-about-andorra Fri, 26 Apr 2024 15:11:53 +0200 8-things-you-never-knew-about-andorra It's the original and - we dare to say - will always remain the best, so here's a few things you might not know about the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260417/11-things-to-know-about-frances-arc-de-triomphe Fri, 17 Apr 2026 17:29:50 +0200 11-things-to-know-about-frances-arc-de-triomphe French MPs have approved a bill regarding Alsace’s withdrawal from its Grand Est region - but why does Alsace want to leave, and where is it going? https://www.thelocal.fr/20260410/explained-why-does-alsace-want-to-leave-its-french-region Fri, 10 Apr 2026 17:38:05 +0200 explained-why-does-alsace-want-to-leave-its-french-region A 600-year-old grape seed discovered in the toilets of a medieval French hospital is genetically identical to the grapes still being used to make pinot noir wine, scientists said on Tuesday. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260324/600-year-old-pinot-noir-grape-found-in-medieval-french-toilet Tue, 24 Mar 2026 17:10:52 +0100 600-year-old-pinot-noir-grape-found-in-medieval-french-toilet A Paris court has found a historian of the Nazi occupation of France not guilty of libel for having described her mother and other family members as "collaborationist" during World War II. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260320/french-author-cleared-of-libel-over-nazi-collaborator-family-novel Fri, 20 Mar 2026 16:47:14 +0100 french-author-cleared-of-libel-over-nazi-collaborator-family-novel Children at a primary school in eastern France found a strange new attraction next to their playground this week: a skeleton sitting upright, peeking out the top of a circular pit. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260318/mysterious-ancient-skeletons-discovered-sitting-upright-in-france Wed, 18 Mar 2026 16:18:13 +0100 mysterious-ancient-skeletons-discovered-sitting-upright-in-france In French town after French town, you’ll see famous names from history honoured on street signs - but who wins the prize for the biggest number of streets, avenues and boulevards bearing their name? https://www.thelocal.fr/20230511/which-french-figure-has-the-most-streets-named-after-them Thu, 11 May 2023 11:23:29 +0200 which-french-figure-has-the-most-streets-named-after-them Fragments removed from the Bayeux Tapestry in 1941 by a Nazi scientist have been returned, according to the French museum that houses the priceless 900-year-old artefact. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260116/germany-returns-to-france-fragments-of-the-bayeux-tapestry-taken-in-1941 Fri, 16 Jan 2026 17:49:12 +0100 germany-returns-to-france-fragments-of-the-bayeux-tapestry-taken-in-1941 A historian of the Nazi occupation of France is being sued by her own relatives for alleged libel after she promoted her first novel as inspired by her family's history. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260108/frenchwoman-accused-of-libel-over-nazi-collaborator-family-novel Thu, 08 Jan 2026 10:38:48 +0100 frenchwoman-accused-of-libel-over-nazi-collaborator-family-novel This week two investigations have been launched into 'historical revisionism', both relating to comments made about World War II and the Holocaust. Here's what the law says about this in France. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251120/explained-why-holocaust-denial-is-illegal-in-france Thu, 20 Nov 2025 12:42:10 +0100 explained-why-holocaust-denial-is-illegal-in-france France on Tuesday promoted Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish army captain wrongly convicted of treason in 1894, to the rank of brigadier general as an act of reparation in a notorious case of antisemitism that has caused outrage for generations. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251118/france-promotes-jewish-soldier-dreyfus-130-years-after-scandal Tue, 18 Nov 2025 14:31:11 +0100 france-promotes-jewish-soldier-dreyfus-130-years-after-scandal France on Thursday marks a decade since suffering its worst attack, with the only surviving assailant jailed for life and plans for a long-term memorial. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251113/france-marks-decade-since-harrowing-paris-attacks-2 Thu, 13 Nov 2025 09:28:46 +0100 france-marks-decade-since-harrowing-paris-attacks-2 There is a dark side to the City of Light, and it's very dark indeed. https://www.thelocal.fr/20191030/halloween-the-ten-spookiest-places-in-paris Wed, 30 Oct 2019 11:34:06 +0100 halloween-the-ten-spookiest-places-in-paris The bleu-blanc-rouge Tricolore, which was adopted after the Revolution, is the official flag of France, but it is far from the only flag unfurled and waved in France. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251029/basque-to-breton-understanding-frances-regional-flags Wed, 29 Oct 2025 14:52:49 +0100 basque-to-breton-understanding-frances-regional-flags The late French justice minister Robert Badinter saved many lives by dedicating his own to the fight against capital punishment, playing a pivotal role in banning the guillotine in 1981. He will be inducted into the Panthéon on October 9th. https://www.thelocal.fr/20240209/french-minister-who-abolished-guillotine-dies-aged-95 Fri, 09 Feb 2024 14:07:11 +0100 french-minister-who-abolished-guillotine-dies-aged-95