Published: 08 Nov 2012 16:01 GMT+01:00 | Print version
Updated: 08 Nov 2012 16:01 GMT+01:00
The Champs Elysées are to get their traditional Christmas lights back, after a one-year avant-garde experiment was grumpily received by Parisians, the avenue's traders association said on Thursday.
Actress Diane Kruger will turn on the lights on November 21, changed back to "reinforce the Christmassy feel".
Last year the avenue was kitted out with a conceptual light display by design duo Koert Vermeulen and Marcos Vinals, each of its 200 trees hung with three huge coloured energy-saving hoops.
But two thirds of passers-by questioned in an IFOP survey at the time said the display – while innovative – had moved "too far away from the traditional image of Christmas."
This year's display has been revamped to bring back a more "fairytale quality," explained the traders' group.
In addition to the coloured hoops, the trees will be decked out with seven metres of sparkling garlands, creating giant curtains of light running down the famed avenue.
As was the case last year, the entire set-up will be fuelled by a solar farm, part of a drive that has slashed the annual display's energy consumption by 90 percent since 2006.
France angrily hit back on Monday at accusations that its bid to protect Europe's film and television industries from Hollywood dominance was "reactionary". READ () »
Much of south west France and parts of Normandy in the north of the country remained on storm alert on Monday with hailstorms and heavy rain expected to batter the region until Tuesday night. READ () »
Plans to open a café in Paris, where stressed or lonely clients can stroke a cat while sipping a coffee, have angered some animal rights groups in France. One activist said he didn’t want the animals reduced to “teddy bears.” READ () »
Bars and cafes in France have long been accused of flouting the smoking ban by allowing smokers to light up on terraces that were almost entirely covered. However a court in France has ruled that the habit must be stubbed out. READ () »
A French court officially ordered the liquidation of entertainment retailer Virgin on Monday. The company has 26 stores in the country, employs 960 staff and has been in receivership since January. READ () »
Beijing has demanded that France take adequate measures to protect its citizens in the aftermath of a racist attack which saw six Chinese students beaten up in Bordeaux. A French minister said the violence had harmed France's image abroad. READ () »
The president of the European Commission slammed France on Monday for its “reactionary” stance towards globalization. José Manuel Barroso’s comments follow marathon trade talks between EU member states over a potential EU-US free trade deal. READ () »
A woman was found dead, lodged in the shutter of a charity clothes bank in south-eastern France on Sunday. The woman is believed to have suffocated after getting trapped when she put her head through the container's metal deposit door. READ () »
The world's biggest air show takes to the skies on Monday, with a battle between Boeing and Airbus for orders in the lucrative market for wide-body planes set to dominate the Paris event. READ () »
A parliamentary by-election has left the French government humiliated after the ruling Socialist party was eliminated in the first round. The run-off ballot will be fought out between the opposition UMP party and the far-right National Front. READ () »
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