Issued on: 07/05/2020 – 13:31Modified: 07/05/2020 – 13:31 Madonna said Thursday she has recovered from the Covid-19 disease, which forced her to pull out of a string of concerts in Paris in February and March. The “Queen of Pop” said she had tested positive for antibodies which may mean she had Covid-19 — though at the […]
Macron announces extra aid for French arts sector battered by Covid-19 crisis
Issued on: 06/05/2020 – 13:50Modified: 06/05/2020 – 13:50 French President Emmanuel Macron said he was looking into more financial aid for the country’s arts and culture sectors that have been hit hard by thecoronavirus, including the closure of museums and the postponement of major events. Macron said he also wanted to “defend European creativity” in the face of competition […]
Algerian singer Idir, champion of Berber culture, dies at 70
Issued on: 03/05/2020 – 15:17Modified: 03/05/2020 – 15:17 The Algerian singer Idir, a leading cultural ambassador of his native Kabylie and its Berber language, died in Paris on Saturday aged 70, his family has announced. Idir, who suffered from pulmonary fibrosis, had been taken to hospital on Friday.”We regret to announce the death of our father, Idir,” […]
Week in Review: Women on the front lines of Covid-19, lifting France’s lockdown and homemade homages to art
Issued on: 01/05/2020 – 13:39Modified: 01/05/2020 – 13:39 FRANCE 24 takes a three-part look at the women on the front lines of the Covid-19 fight in France and examines the details of the government plan to start lifting lockdown on May 11. We also spoke with Iceland’s prime minister about her country’s response to the pandemic and examined how art […]
‘You Are the Champions’: Locked-down rockers Queen record health worker anthem
Issued on: 01/05/2020 – 09:17Modified: 01/05/2020 – 09:17 Rock band Queen and singer Adam Lambert are raising money for health workers fighting COVID-19 with new single “You Are The Champions”, an updated version of classic hit “We Are The Champions” recorded on mobile phones under lockdown. The track is for “all those in the frontline, […]
Legendary drummer and Afrobeat pioneer Tony Allen dies in Paris
Issued on: 01/05/2020 – 08:02Modified: 01/05/2020 – 08:02 Legendary Nigerian drummer Tony Allen, who created afrobeat along with his old bandmate Fela Kuti, died suddenly at the age of 79 in Paris on Thursday, his manager told AFP. “We don’t know the exact cause of death,” manager Eric Trosset said, adding it was not linked […]
Coronavirus: Vilnius turns its airport into a drive-in cinema
Lithuanian capital Vilnius has put a fresh twist on the trend of drive-in cinemas – hosting one at the city’s airport!With nearly all flights scrapped due to COVID-19, the airport teamed up with the Vilnius International Film Festival.The first movie was the Oscar-winning South Korean drama Parasite on Wednesday (April 29). Around 150 cars showed […]
Week in Review: Violence in the Paris suburbs, Syria risks a ‘bloodbath’ and riding with Bugatti
FRANCE 24 looks at Italy’s preparations to reverse its lockdown after having been hit hard by the coronavirus, an outbreak of violence in some of the impoverished suburbs of Paris and the risk of the virus causing a “bloodbath” in Syria. We also spoke to the Black Eyed Peas about their latest releases and looked at […]
Duke and Duchess of Sussex tell tabloids: ‘We won’t engage with you’
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have announced that they will now refuse to engage with the British tabloid press accusing them of publishing “distorted, false, or invasive” stories.The couple wrote to the editors of Britain’s Daily Mail, The Sun, Mirror and Express on Sunday to outline “a new media relations policy” now that they’re […]
Lady Gaga, Rolling Stones, top stars come ‘together at home’ for Covid-19 benefit concert
Issued on: 19/04/2020 – 07:23Modified: 19/04/2020 – 07:23 Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Beyonce and Oprah Winfrey on Saturday headlined a special broadcast of music, comedy and personal stories celebrating those around the world on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic. The two-hour “One World:Together at Home” event, broadcast across multiple television […]
Week in Review: A year after the Notre-Dame fire, Covid-19 immunity and a visit to Beaujolais
France marked a year since the Notre-Dame fire this week with restoration halted as a result of Covid-19. We also spoke to South Korea’s foreign minister, who cast doubt on the idea of developing immunity after contracting the coronavirus, and visited some of France’s front-line workers – the men and women behind the scenes keeping the country going […]
Poetry power scene in Sudan wins prestigious press photo award
Issued on: 17/04/2020 – 11:37Modified: 17/04/2020 – 11:37 An emotion-charged photo of a young man illuminated by cellphone lights as he recites poetry during the 2019 protests calling for civilian rule in Sudan won this year’s prestigious World Press Photo award. Titled “Straight Voice,” the image was captured by Japanese photographer Yasuyoshi Chiba, in the […]
Chilean author Luis Sepulveda dies of Covid-19 in northern Spain
Issued on: 16/04/2020 – 11:31Modified: 16/04/2020 – 11:31 The acclaimed Chilean writer Luis Sepulveda has died at a hospital in northern Spain some six weeks after testing positive for coronavirus, his publishing house said on Thursday. He was 70. “The writer Luis Sepúlveda has died in Oviedo,” said a statement by Barcelona-based Tusquets, adding it […]
A year after the Notre-Dame fire, restoration is suspended amid Covid-19 lockdown
Issued on: 15/04/2020 – 11:45Modified: 15/04/2020 – 11:45 On the first anniversary Wednesday of the devastating blaze that ripped through Notre-Dame Cathedral, there are no builders on site and the scientists involved are working from home. FRANCE 24 investigates how the coronavirus is affecting the reconstruction of the 850-year-old monument. The construction site engulfing Paris’s Notre-Dame Cathedral stands silent, […]
Covid-19: Cannes Film Festival will not be held in ‘original form’ this year
Issued on: 14/04/2020 – 20:23Modified: 14/04/2020 – 20:23 It will be difficult to hold the Cannes film festival in its original form in 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak, organisers said Tuesday, adding they were looking at new ways of hosting the world’s biggest annual celebration of cinema. The festival had already been postponed from […]
‘Worse than 9/11 and the 2008 crash combined’: Global tourism takes a hit from Covid-19
Issued on: 13/04/2020 – 14:17Modified: 13/04/2020 – 14:17 With coronavirus travel bans in place around the planet, the tourism industry – worth 10 percent of global GDP – is being hit hard. FRANCE 24 investigates which sectors are most at risk and when a recovery might be on the cards. Birdsong fills the air, blossoms […]
Week in Review: Holy days under lockdown, digital tracking to stem Covid-19 and coping with isolation
With roughly half the world’s population now under some form of lockdown, FRANCE 24 looks at how the French government is eyeing digital tracking apps to contain the coronavirus while millions around the world celebrate Easter, Passover and Ramadan in quarantine. We also asked our viewers to share their tips on mitigating the emotional cost of prolonged isolation. ARTICLESCritics raise […]
Week in Review: Cyberattacks capitalise on the virus crisis and why Covid-19 is more deadly for men
Issued on: 04/04/2020 – 16:01Modified: 04/04/2020 – 16:06 As much of the world remains on lockdown, FRANCE 24 takes a look at the rise in cyberattacks as nations struggle to deal with a health emergency; the complications from coronavirus that can last a lifetime; the wildlife returning to major cities as residents stay indoors; and […]
Bill Withers, soul legend who wrote ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’, dies at 81
Bill Withers, who wrote and sang a string of soulful songs in the 1970s that have stood the test of time, including “Lean on Me, ” “Lovely Day” and “Ain’t No Sunshine,” has died from heart complications, his family said in a statement to the Associated Press. He was 81. The three-time Grammy Award winner, […]
Afro-jazz great Manu Dibango dies after contracting coronavirus
Issued on: 24/03/2020 – 10:03Modified: 24/03/2020 – 10:04 Veteran Afro-jazz star Manu Dibango died on Tuesday after contracting the coronavirus, his music publisher told AFP. The 86-year-old Cameroonian, best known for the 1972 hit “Soul Makossa”, is one of the first worldwide stars to die as a result of COVID-19.”He died early this morning in a […]
Ideas to keep you culturally engaged during confinement
Issued on: 21/03/2020 – 17:59Modified: 21/03/2020 – 17:59 You’re cooped up at home. Restless. Bored. It’s springtime and sunny and all you want to do is go outside, but you can’t. Don’t despair. There is a world at the other end of your internet connection and in it are plenty of ways to keep yourself […]
Country music legend Kenny Rogers dies at 81
Issued on: 21/03/2020 – 09:13Modified: 21/03/2020 – 09:13 Grammy-winning country singer Kenny Rogers died late on Friday night at the age of 81, his family said on Saturday. The American singer “passed away peacefully at home from natural causes under the care of hospice and surrounded by his family,” a statement on the singer’s website said.”The family […]
Superstars croon isolation blues, brotherhood tunes in the time of coronavirus
Issued on: 20/03/2020 – 16:18Modified: 20/03/2020 – 16:24 Relatively obscure singers were the first to react musically to the coronavirus with a small army of unknowns going viral with videos of hand-washing dance numbers and riffs on “It’s Corona Time” posted to social media. But now the big stars are emerging from the hermetically sealed […]
Week in Review: Parisians adapt to a life on lockdown and the race to find a coronavirus vaccine
As the coronavirus stole headlines across the world, we take a look at the race to find a vaccine that could put an end to the global pandemic and strolled through empty streets as a coronavirus quarantine was announced and Paris ground to a halt. On a lighter note, the French are bursting into applause on their balconies […]
Week in Review: France’s former PM goes on trial, Earth’s changing pole and the Paris Agriculture Fair
Issued on: 28/02/2020 – 12:03Modified: 28/02/2020 – 12:03 This week FRANCE 24 visited the Paris Agriculture Fair (Salon de l’agriculture) – a must-do for French politicians from across the spectrum – as a former prime minister went on trial over hiring his relatives. We also take a look at Al Pacino’s small-screen debut as a Nazi hunter and […]
Fearing ‘public lynching’, Polanski skips French Oscars night
Issued on: 27/02/2020 – 16:08Modified: 27/02/2020 – 16:08 Under-fire filmmaker Roman Polanski has announced he is skipping Friday’s awards ceremony for the Césars, France’s equivalent of the Oscars, saying he will not submit himself to a “public lynching” over rape accusations he denies. Women’s rights activists have vowed to disrupt the awards ceremony in Paris, plastering […]
French Film Academy appoints interim leader ahead of tense Cesar Awards
Issued on: 26/02/2020 – 18:12Modified: 26/02/2020 – 18:12 France’s Académie des Césars, which awards its version of the Oscars, appointed an interim leader on Wednesday, days after its entire board resigned amid controversies over the academy’s attitude to women and its lack of transparency. The appointment of film producer Margaret Menegoz comes just 48 hours […]
Invader’s ‘Rubik Mona Lisa’ shatters estimate at Paris modern art auction
Issued on: 24/02/2020 – 08:15Modified: 24/02/2020 – 08:15 A French street artist’s interpretation of the Mona Lisa made of 330 Rubik’s Cubes sold for 480,200 euros ($520,680) on Sunday at a modern art auction in Paris, well above presale estimates of up to 150,000 euros, organisers Artcurial said. The 2005 artwork by anonymous street artist […]
Week in Review: The Paris mayoral race heats up with a sex tape scandal and a new conservative challenger
The Paris mayoral race heated up this week with the release of a sex tape and a new conservative entering the fray. In Tehran, medical centres have been hit hard by US sanctions, we look back at the tragedy of France’s “stolen children” and Ethiopian migrants trek 2,000 kilometres into Saudi Arabia via Yemen. ARTICLES Beyond rockets and air strikes: […]