Whatever you do, don’t miss this unique film documentary in which the still lovely Petula Clark explores the story of the lyric-driven French chanson and looks at some of the greatest artists and examples of the form. It’s 60 minutes long and is available on BBC i-player until 12th June.
I love French music for the dominance of lyrics and emotion over tune and I learned a lot – not least (thanks to handy subtitles) the meaning of words that I’d never quite been able to catch when listening to the songs.
This tender, funny, revealing and absorbing film follows singers and artists who propelled chanson into the limelight, including Charles Aznavour (a protégé of Edith Piaf), Juliette Greco (whom Jean-Paul Sartre described as having 'a million poems in her voice'), Anna Karina (muse of Jean-Luc Godard and darling of the French Cinema's New Wave), actress and singer Jane Birkin, who had a global hit (along with Serge Gainsbourg) with the controversial Je t'aime (Moi non plus), and Marc Almond, who has received great acclaim with his recordings of Jacques Brel songs.
In exploring the famous chanson tradition and the singers who made the songs their own, the story is continued into contemporary French composition, looking at the new lyrical forms of current artists such as Stromae, Têtes Raides, Etienne Daho and the dazzling Zaz, who also give exclusive interviews.
The programme’s website (link below) has a list of all the music played.
Last word surely goes to Edith Piaf, who said, "I want to make people cry even when they don't understand my words."
The half-term holiday is round the corner and the summer break just a few weeks away. Where in France will you take the children? It’s certainly a top destination for good old fashioned family holidays at a price you can afford. Check out our family holiday guide, latest special offers and last minute deals through the links below.
The Dordogne, Languedoc-Rousillon and the Mediterranean are all favourite destinations – and for somewhere different, try the Auvergne or Burgundy. Most accessible for family holidays is North West France, especially Normandy and Brittany. You’ll find spacious countryside, Celtic traditions and every kind of seaside from unspoilt rocky coves to buzzing resorts with wide, sandy beaches.
For a budget alternative to a beach holiday head inland for a country house and explore a lac or plan d’eau, which cater for all ages with pedaloes, swimming, fishing and usually a stretch of lakeside sandy beach. And, of course, give most children a swimming pool in their own sun-filled back garden and they’ll play happily all day.
You might decide to rent your own villa, farmhouse, chateau in France - or join with another family or group and spread the cost of a large house.
An activity holiday is a great way to keep all members of the family amused and maybe learn new skills or make new friends. Theme parks are one of France’s great attractions and Disneyland Paris, Futuroscope and Parc Asterix all offer a really good day out, as do numerous water parks.
Owners at some self-catering properties can arrange activities to suit everyone, from white water rafting to golf, table tennis to horse riding, mountain biking to canoeing. All add to the mix of a family holiday to remember.
The fabulous prize in our latest competition is a holiday at Domaine de Fumel in the beautiful Dordogne countryside near Boisse. This competition is running in conjunction with French Holiday Inspirations 2015, an ideas-packed guide to holidays across France, on sale at newsagents and online.
Domaine de Fumel is a luxury stone farmhouse complex of seven pretty cottages and a large swimming pool with panoramic views – all set in their own 53 acres of vines and farmland.
Dave and Bunty Cox have created an oasis of calm and tranquillity for the discerning holidaymaker, with a no children policy and a private and peaceful feel. Each one-bedroom cottage is beautifully restored and furnished, with fully equipped kitchens and queen or king size beds.
The cottages have a courtyard, barbecue, sunbeds and boules, there are figs and cherries to pick and wildlife abounds, including golden oriels and nightingales.
Discover the nearby medieval village of Issigeac, with its Sunday market, or drive to Bergerac on the river Dordogne. You can also see the famous cave paintings at Lascaux, the pre-history centre of Les Eyzies and Josephine Baker’s Art Deco château. Enjoy beautiful views, walks and river trips, shop for arts and crafts and savour local wines and food.
The prize week’s stay can be taken during April/May or Sep/ Oct 2016 and you can enter by following the first link below. (Travel is not included). Can’t wait until then to stay at the Domaine? See more and book at the second link. Alternatively, view our huge range of gites, cottages, villas and other accommodation across France.
From 8 June 2015, the paper counterpart to the photocard UK driving licence will no longer be issued by DVLA. Those already issued will, they say, be invalid.
This does not apply to anyone who has only a paper licence, issued before cards came into use. It only applies to those with a card and a paper counterpart.
This means that if you are hiring a vehicle on or after 8 June this summer and you are asked to provide evidence of your driving record (entitlements and/or penalty points), this will only be accessible online.
The online service is free and known as the Share Driving Licence service. We can’t find a link for that yet on the DVLA website, but you can see a ‘View Driving Licence’ service through the link below and this indeed may be all you need. It’s still quite confusing!
The service should be used by both paper and photocard driving licence holders. To log on, you need your National Insurance number and some of the digits of your licence number.
Once you log on, you can download a summary of your licence record which can be printed or shared. You will also receive a unique code to present to the car hire firm when you arrive to pick up the car. The car rental firm will then be able to use the code to access your driver's record from the DVLA website.
However, the code will be valid for only 72 hours, so those leaving home more than three days before they are due to collect their car will have to find a way to access the DVLA site from abroad.
The big car rental firms will hopefully make all their local offices familiar with this service once it is in force – their representatives say that they are learning and testing, although they were given short notice of the change. Also, many car hire offices only want to see the card licence so this will not be a concern. However, we do advise that you print out your record and take it with you, together with your unique code.
Hire offices can access the service online or by phone (except Sundays). There is a charge for phone calls.
Let’s hope your experience leaves you as happy as the couple in our photo!
The Chauvet Cave in the Ardèche region of France contains the world's oldest and richest known cave paintings, dating back 36,000 years. Now, a perfect replica of this awe-inspiring cave is being opened to the public.
La Caverne du Pont d’Arc opens on 25th April and is set to become a massive visitor attraction. Also on the vast hilltop site are a discovery centre, a permanent exhibition on prehistoric people and wall art, restaurants and shops.
Gray Veredon, owner of La Mirande farmhouse luxury B&B near Privas and a qualified tour guide, has been to a preview of the centre and tells us:
“Eight years seems like a long time to get this project finished but the challenges were enormous - from putting the budget together to finding the right site. The final choice is very typical of the local landscape and vegetation of the area, close to the actual cave and at about the same altitude.
Tremendous respect has been shown for the forest that grows in this barren area, giving the impression that not one tree or bush was disturbed or damaged and that the pathways move around them.
The construction was finished right on time and within budget, making it a unique phenomenon in the history of the construction of cultural buildings. The architecture has a beautiful simplicity of style that is very sympathetic to the landscape and bold use of stone and natural wood seems perfectly suited to housing this treasure of humanity.
The actual cave is 8,000m2 and, for the replica, has been reduced to 3,000m2, incorporating all the major features. This works perfectly. I felt that the power and reality of the animals jolted me right back to the time when great artists worked on the walls of the cave.
I was also impressed by the awareness of looking at an entire dramatic production. These were not just paintings of animals, but animals relating - running together and watching one another. Each hollow in the stone facade of the cave is used to express a dramatic statement in the story, with an animal seeming to hide from the others or resting after a long run.
The replica clearly reveals that the cave is a place where rituals were acted out - the type of place that we don't find in our society any more. It was perhaps this ancient reality that had the most powerful and unexpected impact on me.
I recommend the Pont d’Arc cave to anyone as a fascinating place to visit - and of course I’m thrilled to have it on the doorstep. Looking forward to sharing visits with guests at La Mirande!”
The Vendée, our region of the month, lies on the western coast of France in the region of Pays de la Loire. It may not be the best known part of the country, but actually has loads to offer for visitors. Here’s our list of top reasons for making The Vendée your next holiday destination.
Mild sunny climate
The Vendée enjoys similar amounts of sunshine to the midi/méditerranéen departments according to figures from Météo France, hence the name "Vendée Côte de Lumière" (Coast of Light).
Sandy beaches and beautiful islands
140 km of gently sloping sandy beaches mean you are sure to find the right beach for you. Experience the charms of the islands of Yeu and Noirmoutier, jewels of the Atlantic.
A fabulous family destination
Situated on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, this area offers the best of both worlds - a seaside holiday and a wide range of land and sea-based leisure activities – walking, cycling, water sports, theme parks, historic and cultural sites
Puy du Fou, named best theme park in the world
Puy du Fou at Les Epesses is a historical theme park which offers spellbinding shows for all the family. Encounter castles and knights, Vikings, gladiators and musketeers; see the breathtaking Cinescenie and Organs of Fire live evening spectaculars.
Natural beauty: the Marais Poitevin
An extensive and beautiful man-made landscape with intertwining canals and countryside. Known as the ‘green cathedral, it’s a peaceful other world where punts meander under the pollarded Ash trees.
Fine cuisine from land and sea
Vendée culinary specialities include seafood and fresh fish, fleur de sel sea salt, Fiefs Vendéens AOC wine, mogette, bonnotte potatoes from Noirmoutier, Vendée brioche or gâche and ham. There’s an ever increasing number of award winning and Bib Gourmand restaurants.
Large choice of accommodation
Stay by the sea, inland within easy reach of the sea or in the heart of the Vendée. We have a great choice of holiday homes for couples, families and groups including country cottages and farmhouses, seaside villas and delightful rural gites with swimming pool.
Good transport links
Motorways, TGV stations and Nantes and La Rochelle airports make it easy to get to the Vendée. La Roch sur Yon is 4 hours’ drive from Cherbourg and 5-6 hours from Calais.
You may not be familiar with Sarthe, our region of the month, but you will certainly know of Le Mans, its capital. The city is famous as home to the annual Le Mans 24 hour motor race, which dates back to 1923, when it must have been an elegant occasion.
The cars may have changed since then but the excitement is as strong as ever. The race takes place partly on track and partly on closed roads and its prestige attracts thousands of fans from around the world every year. The 2015 race is on 13th and 14th June, so now’s the time to book great value self-catering or B&B accommodation in the surrounding countryside and head into the city for the big event, thus avoiding the crush and expensive hotels.
Be sure to make time to explore the captivating old town of Le Mans, which has been beautifully preserved. You’ll find cobbled streets lined by 15th and 16th century houses with quirky shops and excellent restaurants – and all dominated by the magnificent Le Mans Cathedral, constructed from the 6th through to the 14th Century and a jaw-dropping architectural achievement.
The area is part of the Pays de la Loire, so there are rivers, immaculate villages, historical towns, fairytale chateaux and wine tasting to enjoy, as well as lush countryside. Our accommodation includes gites, farmhouses and a village house, all in beautiful countryside location. You can even stay in a gite that is part of a fabulous chateau in either Sarthe or the neighbouring region of Loir-et-Cher, which is also accessible to Le Mans.