Talking France

The French are the second worst drivers in Europe according to a new survey, but there are many rules of the road that need to be observed. Some are more complicated than others for foreign drivers. And France has become far more attractive for foreign businesses in recent years, but is it all down to President Emmanuel Macron? Welcome to a new episode of Talking France in which our team of journa...

Is there any truth to the cliché that France's workers are lazy and could Ryanair and Easyjet limit French air traffic control strikes? These are just two of the topics we will tackle in the first episode of a new series of Talking France. Please take a minute to leave a review. This week we'll find out why frustrated budget airlines like Ryanair are trying to force a change to limit French air tr...

Is there a whiff of revolution in the air in France after months of protests and strikes and how does living in the country change your habits? This week we have another jam-packed show and we starting by finding out what our team thinks will happen next after months of protests and strikes in France. Could the revolt change France? Is Macron a lame duck, are the strikes over and are we heading fo...

Welcome to our latest episode of Talking France - a weekly podcast by The Local. If you enjoy the podcast please take the time to leave a review on Apple, Spotify or Google or if you have any feedback please email us at news@thelocal.fr. All our in-depth articles are available at our website thelocal.fr Is the long battle over pension reform in France finally coming to an end? Everything could dep...

Welcome to a new episode of Talking France. As always this week, we get stuck into the big issues that are making the news in France.   That means finding out why a French minister exposed herself to a barrage of criticism this week by appearing on the cover of Playboy magazine?   And Marseille, France's second city is being dubbed the "murder capital” again after more deadly shooti...

Welcome to a special bonus episode of Talking France. If this is your first time listening to Talking France you should check out our regular weekly podcast which looks at a wide range of news, talking points and cultural questions from France. You listen to all our episodes here . For this bonus episode we are sticking to one subject focussing on the political crisis and protests against pen...

Welcome to a new episode of Talking France, a podcast produced by The Local, made possible by our members. If you like the podcast please take a moment to leave a review on the platform where you listen to it, such as Apple podcasts or send us your views via our podcast survey HERE . France is still mired in crisis and this week we focus on why the mood in the country has become so angry. We also...

Welcome to a new episode of Talking France, a podcast by The Local, for anyone interested in what’s going on in France. And right now there’s a lot going on in France. For example, an almighty political crisis over President Emmanuel Macron’s contentious move to raise the pension age from 62 to 64. We have all the latest on how the battle is playing out, including on the streets where hundreds of...

There is always a lot to talk about in France and this week’s episode is brimming with important issues and changes that listeners will be keen to know about. As rubbish piles up on the streets of Paris the controversial pension reform bill reaches a crucial moment in the French parliament. Will Macon get enough votes to get it through? The French tax man is famously demanding but perhaps not as m...

Talking France is back this week with more analysis on the big news stories in France as well as insights into French culture. To start us off we look at the state of play with the ongoing French pension strikes and whether they could yet bring France to a stand still. We look into the controversy surrounding Paris 2024 Olympics tickets and why it’s only March but we are already talking about wate...

As is the time honoured tradition on this podcast we bring you up to date with some of the most interesting news stories and changes happening in France. Including wine. Yes, nothing is more synonymous with France than wine, but why is the government spending millions to turn thousands of bottles of wine into cosmetics? And when it comes to vin - we try to get to the bottom of some of the fact and...

In this episode of Talking France we look into why so many Parisians are choosing to leave Paris to live elsewhere and what are the upsides and downsides to this exodus for the French capital. We also bring you news of a change to the process of becoming French and explore just how hard it is for a foreigner to become naturalised. One of the criteria of becoming a citoyen of France is of course to...

This week on Talking France we explore why the French public are compared to stroppy teenagers when it comes to their relationship with the state. Are they just a bunch of ungrateful kids or are they right to be so demanding? We also discuss the next moves in the battle over pension reform after the third day of mass strikes and protests this week. Visitors have been warned-off two of France’s mos...

On this podcast we bring you up to date with all the big news and changes in France that you should know about. All in roughly 30 minutes. On this week’s episode we look at the latest skirmishes in the battle between the French government and unions over pension reform in France. The protests appear to be growing in strength and more strikes are planned in February. It’s no doubt a crucial moment...

As is our duty on this podcast we bring you the main news and talking points from the week in France including of course updates about strikes and protests, what’s coming next and whether the strikes are going to hit the winter holiday period. We also examine why retirement in France is so sacred and why the country is such a popular place for foreigners to retire to. The French are known to cheri...

You join us at a really crucial moment, for France, for President Emmanuel Macron, for the French trade unions and of course for anyone living in the country or visiting. That’s because what’s been billed as the ‘mother of all battles’ - is about to begin between unions and striking workers on one side and the French government on the other. At the centre of it all is the government's controversia...

It’s the start of a new year, there’s a lot going on in France to catch up with so we have a jam-packed episode featuring the president Emmanuel Macron finally opening up about his love life, a look ahead to the ski season in the Alps - will there be any snow to ski on and why folk in south west France will be paying more property taxes. And the battle lines have been drawn between the French gove...

This episode of Talking France is dedicated to looking ahead and what’s in store for France and everyone living here in 2023. Will there be surprise elections, will there be street protests?  There will certainly be price rises and we’ll explain just exactly what will cost you more in France in 2023. And perhaps what could cost less - including property. There will also be big changes for tra...

It's another jam-packed episode on Talking France featuring the aftermath of the World Cup final including why French president Emmanuel Macron was accused of being “offside”. Article: ‘Offside’?: Macron’s World Cup final support divides opinion We tell you how your finances could change in France now that the budget has finally passed and introduce you to the World’s richest man - yep he’s a Fren...

On this week’s episode of Talking France we find out why certain Paris cafés are banning customers from getting out their laptops. Are they really “squatters who don’t pay their way” as one café owner told us, or just a modern, hi-tech version of a traditional Paris café goer? We hear from both sides of the row. Article : ‘They are squatters’: Are Paris cafés right to clamp down on laptop users? T...

On this week's show we hear about the real chances of there being blackouts in France this winter and why the French government can't simply blame Vladimir Putin and his war in Ukraine. OPINION: France faces the real possibility of power cuts this winter and it can’t blame Putin We hear about the Frenchman taking on Elon Musk and we also get into the thorny subject of what the French and the Engli...

In this week's show we bring listeners up to date with some of the biggest news and talking points in France including President Emmanuel Macron's state visit to the United States. We look at the ups and downs in Franco-American relations over the years and find out why Macron is far from happy with his US counterpart Joe Biden. We also find out a little bit more about the thousands of A...

In this week's episode of Talking France we find out why people in the country could be facing a "tsunami" of rising prices in the months ahead. The mayor of Paris is considering a ban on electric scooter rental schemes. Are they just too dangerous or do they offer a vital, environmentally friendly and exciting way to get around the City of Light? We hear both sides of the argument. We also learn...

It’s Beaujolais Nouveau day, when the 2022 batch of Beaujolais wines hits the shelves. We’ll explain why it’s such a big event – but why it was even bigger in the 1980s. Does Beaujolais Nouveau wine deserve its bad reputation? This week we also discuss bullfighting, yes bullfighting exists in France, well at least in certain parts of the country. But for how much longer? The controversial blood-sp...

As usual this week we will be talking about the main news in France and also digging into some interesting subjects that really help explain the country and its culture to you, our listeners. Up first we'll bring you the main talking points from the week including a look at the new president of the French far right. He's only 27 years old. Also will there be Christmas lights in French cities...