The port at Larmor-Baden in Brittany. Photo: Damien Boilley
For months the people of the tiny seaside hamlet of Larmor-Baden in Brittany have been living in fear as a serial arsonist has burned down properties at will. On Wednesday French police appeared to have made a breakthrough.
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The Catholic shrine of Lourdes, Haute-Pyrénées under 1.4 metres of water after severe flooding in south-western France, which claimed its victim in the early hours of Wednesday. Photo: P. Pavani/AFP
Flash floods in south west France claimed their second victim on Wednesday when a 75-year-old man was swept away to his death in the raging waters. The flooded Catholic shrine of Lourdes was like 'a scene from a disaster movie' according to one hotel owner.
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Aedes albopictus - the Tiger mosquito. Users can check an interactive new map to get warnings and when and where to invest in some bug spray. Photo: Vigilance Moustiques/CDC
As temperatures rise and the rains fall continue to fall, concerns in France have turned to the country’s surging mosquito population. A new interactive map looks set to give residents and holiday-makers a head start in avoiding those nasty mossie bites.
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Reptile enthusiast Dieter Zorn, 53, died after being bitten by a viper during a demonstration aimed at helping the public "get over unfounded fears and eliminate prejudices." Photo: Reptile Show
A reptile enthusiast died after being bitten by a viper during a demonstration in southern France, which was aimed to help audiences overcome their fear of snakes. The man died from a heart attack due to a rare allergy, his colleague told The Local.
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File photo of a Chopard necklace. Photo:AFP
A suspected member of the notorious Pink Panther gang of international jewel thieves has been arrested near Paris,
police sources told AFP on Wednesday.
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Photo: George Groutas
Two of France's most famous luxury brands look set for a bitter court battle after deluxe bag maker Hermès accused the Louis Vuitton group LVMH of "historic fraud", as a long running bitter feud took a new twist on Wednesday.
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Photo Rorro Navia/Damien Varron
A team of French entrepreneurs have used the latest technology to help promote safe sex in France by creating a smartphone app to help randy lovers find their nearest condom dispenser.
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Airbus's new A350 long-haul aircraft does a taxi test at Toulouse-Blagnace aerodrome in south-western France on June 11th. Photo: Eric Cabanis/AFP
French airline company Air France confirmed on Wednesday a multi-billion euro order of Airbus's new A350 planes. The planes are not yet in service and only recently carried out a test flight (see video).
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"Do you know where is the Eiffel Tower?" A new campaign hopes to teach tourism professionals in Pairs how to understand their international clients. Photo: CCI/CRT
The days of the rude Paris waiter or shopkeeper may soon be over. As part of a new campaign, Paris tourism chiefs published a training manual this week aimed at teaching Parisians who come into contact with tourists how to offer them a better welcome.
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Features
Language barriers
Photo: Ashok666
When it comes to fighting off the invasion of English words the French Resistance has had mixed fortunes over the years. Nevertheless the fight goes on. With the help of the Ministry of Culture here's a list of the latest English terms that French authorities want deported.
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My French Career
Photo: HEC
Higher education has dominated the news in France recently thanks to plans for more courses to be taught in English so there's no better time to speak to an international academic to find out more about being a lecturer at a French university.
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JobTalk France
France's auto-entrepreneur scheme is an easy way to get started, but it has its downsides.
France’s “auto-entrepreneur” scheme has been a saving grace for self-employed foreign nationals since it was introduced back in 2009. But as two experts explain to The Local, the system does have its drawbacks and expats should be aware of them.
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My French Career
Photo: Christopher Chantrey
Working as a freelancer in France can be people's idea of a dream job, but it has its pitfalls too as Briton Christopher Chantrey explains in the The Local's latest installment of My French Career.
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JobTalk France
File photo: Elin B/Flickr
Don't believe everything you read about unemployment in France - there are jobs out there. For this week’s installment of The Local’s JobTalk series, we bring you the sectors looking to hire in 2013. Whether you are looking for a career or seasonal work, read on.
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More News
Opinion - Smacking
Photo: Screengrab/Youtube/Fondation pour l'Enfance
As a provocative new anti-smacking video campaign by the Fondation pour l'Enfance (Foundation for Childhood) causes a stir in France, the man behind the drive Dr. Gilles Lazimi tells The Local why France needs a law banning parents from smacking their kids.
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Lourdes floods
Lourdes under flood waters in 2012. Photo: Laurent Dard/AFP
The historic Catholic pilgrimage site of Lourdes in south west France was evacuated on Tuesday after flash floods hit the area. Management at the shrine have told The Local they are growing increasingly concerned as waters continue to rise.
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Photo: AW Sheffield
The Eiffel Tower in Paris was evacuated by police on Tuesday after a man threatened to throw himself off the famous monument. Reports suggest, however, that emergency services personnel have succeeded in apprehending the man.
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Admiral Lord Nelson. Photo: Ell Brown
These words are not the latest outburst by notorious French basher, London's Mayor Boris Johnson, but were the opinion of Britain’s Napoleonic War hero Admiral Lord Nelson, whose outspoken views were revealed in a letter, auctioned in London this week.
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A pregnant Muslim woman who was allegedly attacked in the suburbs of Paris by two ‘skinheads’ for wearing an Islamic face veil has suffered a miscarriage, it was reported on Tuesday.
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Johnny Hallyday (L), Serge Gainsbourg (R). French music icons whose impersonators' bizarre feud turned bloody. Photo: Georges Biard/Claude Truong-Ngoc
A court in north-eastern France on Tuesday sentenced to jail an impersonator to French music icon Serge Gainsbourg for stabbing a rival tribute act for French rock star Johnny Hallyday, amid a bizarre feud between the pair.
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Guards patrol a prison in Marseille. This week, official figures revealed the number of prisoners incarcerated in France has reached an all-time high. Photo: Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP
France has more inmates behind bars than ever before, it was revealed this week, prompting hundreds of prison guards to assemble in front of more than 100 jails on Tuesday, in protest against over-crowding and safety concerns.
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Karim Benzema (left) with French team mate Franck Ribery (right) and Zahia Dehar the former call girl at the centre of the scandal. Photo: Franck Fife/AFP / ZahiaOfficiel
French football stars Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema, went on trial on Tuesday, accused of paying to have sex with then underage call-girl Zahia Dehar. The process was adjourned until January, however, on a legal technicality.
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Photo: Bruce Guenter
Much of the west and south west of France remained on alert on Tuesday with storms and heavy rain expected to hit the region, just a day after hailstorms wreaked havoc for wine growers in one part of the country.
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France hit back at comments made by Jean Manuel Barroso, the President of the EU Commission. Photo: Patrick Hertzog/AFP
France angrily hit back on Monday at accusations that its bid to protect Europe's film and television industries from Hollywood dominance was "reactionary".
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