In spite of having a bad national press in recent years, Perpignan has also something to shout about to the rooftops: in 1988, it created and has since nurtured the world-famous festival Visa pour l’Image.…
Boules, Baldies and Bermuda Shorts? Basil Howitt was enthralled by the eccentricities and fanaticism of pétanque players. Une partie de pétanque Une partie de pétanque A game of pétanque Ça fait plaisir Is so much…
The Well by Mike Briley When Peter Bennett is made redundant from his publishing company in the UK he decides he needs a break before starting on a new phase of his career. Influenced…
Parting Potpourri Basil Howitt welcomes the inauguration, at last, of the trans-frontier TGV link between Perpignan and Figueres. He also ties up a few loose ends left dangling from one or two of his earlier…
The show must go on! In spite of torrential storms during this year’s Fête des Vendanges at Banyuls-sur-Mer, the Fanfare Bands played on, à la Titanic. Basil Howitt reports. In our part of the world,…
Perpignan: Healthy Democracy or Banana Republic? Basil Howitt offers the first of two updates on Perpignan’s surreal smelly socks election saga that began a year ago last March. Following a final ruling by the Conseil…
Who would be a vigneron? Amidst the general doom and gloom in the caves cooperatives of France’s largest wine producing region – the Languedoc-Roussillon – there are several reasons for hope. Basil Howitt’s report finishes…
Georges Frêche: a triumph of deeds over dogma 3 The gaff-prone giant of politics carried all before in the Languedoc-Roussillon’s Regional Elections 3 [(I repeat, I am from the South and will remain so. It…
Small Great Revolution The Mayor of Barcelona, Jordi Hereu talks of the future high-speed rail links between Spain and France Basil Howitt offers a third update on the high-speed TGV link-in-progress between Perpignan and…
2 More scandals from the Roussillon, otherwise known as “Le Far West de la Politique” (“The Wild West of Politics”) 2 Basil Howitt reports on a new twist in the notorious Saint-Cyprien saga. He also…