News
Weather warning - The Alpes Maritimes and the Var are on a yellow warning today Friday 17th November, after being placed on an orange one on Thursday due to high winds. Gusts of between 60 and 100 km/h are expected in places in the Var and some western parts of the Alpes-Maritimes. Meteo France said that gusts may reach 140 to 150 km/h inland and 100 to 120 km/h on the coast of the Var.
Strike action - Industrial action by French air traffic controllers next Monday, November 20th, is expected to cause disruption to air travel at several airports. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation said that from Sunday evening until 6am on Tuesday morning arrivals and departures will be disrupted at Paris Orly, Toulouse Blagnac, Bordeaux Merignac and Marseille Provence airports. It recommended delaying your journey if you are able and to contact your airline for more information.
Football match - The Euro 2024 qualifier match between France and Gibraltar is due to take place tomorrow Saturday, November 18th. Kick-off is at 8:45 p.m. at the Allianz Riviera stadium in Nice. The National police have said that you should adapt your travel plans to take account of the large number of spectators and that traffic problems are possible.
National Day of Monaco – Meanwhile, Monaco is getting ready for two days of celebrations this weekend as part of its National Day on November 19th. The Prince's Day is the national holiday of Monaco and is celebrated this Sunday. Several events are planned over the weekend and like every year the Town Hall of Monaco will offer Monegasques and residents the opportunity to attend free of charge (but by invitation). Amongst the entertainment are two concerts organized at the Espace Léo Ferré as well as a festive evening and a giant stockfish at the Condamine Market. On Saturday evening at 8;15pm there will be a firework display on the Port of Monaco (open to all of course!) followed by live music and like every year, the population is invited to decorate their facades, windows, and balconies in the red and white colours of Monaco.
Ahead of the celebrations HSH Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene have spoken to local media Monaco-Matin of how they have discussed the preparation of the Monegasque National Day with their children Prince Jaques and Princess Gabriella, who “embody the future of the Principality”. In the interview Princess Charlene also shared her joy at seeing South Africa recently lift the Webb Ellis trophy in France. As a reminder don’t forget to stay tuned to Riviera Radio, as we will soon be welcoming HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco for his traditional annual Christmas address to you, our listener.
Film festival in Marseille - Marseille is to host the 18th edition of “Films Femmes Méditerranée” a festival dedicated to feminine cinema and cinema from the south, which runs from tomorrow November 18th to November 24th. Created in 2006 the festival highlights female directors from the Mediterranean shores. This year 50 films will be screened from feature films to short films, fiction and documentaries.
Rudest places in France, not good news for Nice - Nice is one of the rudest places in France according to a new survey. The city came third in order of rudeness, behind Lyon and Marseille, in the survey of French people. Paris is in fourth place. However, there is some good news for the people of Nice, with the survey finding that they are the most generous, as measured by tips left in restaurants.
Business
Alibaba Group's Hong Kong shares slumped 10% on Friday after it scrapped plans to spin off its cloud business, citing uncertainties fuelled by US curbs on exports to China of semiconductors used in artificial intelligence applications. The drop, potentially its biggest one-day fall in more than a year, wiped about $20 billion off the Chinese tech giant's market value.
IBM has suspended advertising on X, after a report said its ads were placed next to posts praising Adolf Hitler and Nazism. The company said it was "completely unacceptable" that its content appeared in such threads on the platform. X said it does not intentionally place brands "next to this kind of content". It comes as X owner Elon Musk was criticised after calling an antisemitic conspiracy theory "actual truth" when replying to a post on the platform.
PepsiCo has been sued by New York state for plastic pollution along the Buffalo River that is allegedly contaminating the water and harming wildlife. According to the lawsuit, PepsiCo is the single largest identifiable contributor to the problem. PepsiCo's spokesperson has told reporters that it has been "transparent in its journey to reduce use of plastic". The American giant is the latest major corporation to face a lawsuit by local authorities about its impact on the environment.
Sport
Formula One – The first practice at the Las Vegas Grand Prix has been called off after just nine minutes of running because of a problem with a manhole cover. Governing body the FIA said there would be an indefinite delay while all manhole covers around the track were checked.
Cricket - Australia are through to the World Cup final after a tension-filled three-wicket win over South Africa. Australia will now face host India in the final on Sunday.
Football - Cristiano Ronaldo scored a world record-extending 128th international goal for Portugal as they beat minnows Liechtenstein in Euro 2024 qualifying.
Weather
A yellow « moderate » wind alert is in place for the Var and the Alpes Maritimes today. Gust of up to 60km/hr are expected in Cannes and Saint-Tropez. 40km/hr in Marseille. Cloudy skies clearing as the day goes on. Highs of 18 degrees in Nice, Monaco and Saint-Tropez. 20 degrees in Cannes, 13 degrees inland in Tende. This evening going down to 11 degrees with clear skies.
The outlook for Saturday, fine to begin with, clouding over by the afternoon, highs of 18 degrees in Nice. Sunday sunny intervals, highs of 23 degrees in Saint-Tropez.
Sunrise 07.26am
Sunset 05.03pm
TGV services across much of France are gradually improving after several arson attacks affected the network in the early hours of this morning....
Read More
Paris is getting ready to shut down it’s city centre and its airspace as well as mobilise 45,000 police and several army units in what has been billed...
Read More
Lucie Castets, the left-wing candidate for Prime Minister, reiterated her desire to lead the government during a media appearance on July 25. A poll s...
Read More
French President Emmanuel Macron is preparing to welcome world leaders to the Olympic games opening ceremony tomorrow night and has been visiting key ...
Read More
France will host the 2030 Winter Olympics in the Alpes, conditional on state and regional financial guarantees. President Macron confirmed his full su...
Read More
