It has been called the nativity war. A French court’s ban on a nativity scene in a town hall in order to preserve France’s secular traditions has triggered a fierce backlash. Continue reading…
Tag Archives: France
British businessman goes on trial for murder of millionaire girlfriend
A British businessman accused of murdering his girlfriend in their five-star Paris hotel held his head in his hands yesterday as the court was shown photographs of a bloodsoaked mattress and her naked bruised body in the bathtub. Continue reading…
French neighbors puzzle over Maxime Hauchard, accused in beheadings
The modest white stucco house set back from the road in this Normandy village near Rouen has been shuttered for more than a week. “They’ve gone. We don’t know when they’ll be back,” said Rene Bret, a next-door neighbor. Continue reading…
Postcard from Carnoët
On a barren hilltop in the heart of Brittany, 50 huge granite statues with primitive features dominate the landscape in a project which has become known as the Valley of the Saints. The six latest, installed last month, each weighed 15 tons. Continue reading…
Will a ban on oakmoss kill the French perfume industry?
Thomas Fontaine goes into his laboratory lined with shelves of dark green bottles and takes a small vial of a sludgy brown substance from the fridge. It gives off a woody, pungent smell. Under a European Commission ruling expected to come into force next year, two elements contained in this oakmoss are to be banned. Continue reading…
Anne Penketh 