Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 15hI seem to be getting an increasing number of emails/comments saying 'How dare you refer to Marine Le Pen's party as far right' - so for the avoidance of doubt, here is The Local's policy on naming French political parties 3173
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 18hKids are out this morning blockading the local lycée, with Thursday declared 'act 2' of student mobilisation 360
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Here in the Paris suburbs we're apparently writing poems about AI . . . which is least wastes less water 020
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 26/09/2026Being a Paris resident visiting other French towns is mainly waiting at the pedestrian crossing to see if cars will stop for you and being amazed that 100% of the time, they do 2181
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026Simply impossible to dislike a town that creates an enormous and beautiful mechanical elephant to walk around spraying water at people ❤️ 7171
Reposted by Emma PearsonRim-Sarah Alouane, Ph.D. @rim-sarah.eurosky.social · 24/09/2026I shared insights for @thelocalfrance.bsky.social podcast about what the French election campaign, the the far-right and what could it means for immigrants and minority communities in France. shows.acast.com/62220755dea7...shows.acast.comFrench fuel prices risk autumn unrest and the real danger posed by Le Pen | Talking FrancePlus will competition result in cheaper train tickets in France? 032
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 24/09/2026Nantes history museum is an outstanding example of how to engage with the less savoury parts of one's history (like having been France's biggest slave trading port). Alongside historic artefacts and descriptions of the 🇫🇷 slave trade are works from modern artists dealing with postcolonial themes 060
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 24/09/2026Do I have any followers who are more au fait than me with aristo guide etiquette? 👇 410
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 23/09/2026And the winner is . . . Brets! Naturally. In fact, 3 of the top 5 are Brets, as is logical and correct 🇫🇷🥔theguardian.com‘They smell of urinal cakes!’: 100 unusual crisp flavours, ranked – from truly awful to totally scoffableMove over ready salted, salt and vinegar and cheese and onion. Gourmet crisps are everywhere, but which are actually worth trying? 3100
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 20/09/2026Was last here 2 years ago during the Paris Olympics, this week part of the Athletes' Village relaunched as the Cité du Cinema, a very cool film, music and entertainment space 091
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 19/09/2026I've walked past the incredible Oscar Niemeyer building that houses the French Communist Party so many times, but today (thanks to #JournéesduPatrimoine) I got to see the inside - it did not disappoint 0181
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 18/09/2026This week I saw in the wild (in a news headline) a 'Poudre de Perlimpinpin', so obviously I am listening again to the 2017 Emmanuel Macron rapyoutube.comLA POUDRE DE PERLIMPINPIN (REMIX) - VERSION FINALEYouTube video by Khaled Freak 142
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026New podcast episode! 🇫🇷 What Le Pen's 'French preference' policy really means for foreigners in France, and is it even legal? 🇫🇷 The mystery saboteurs who derailed the Normandy train 🇫🇷 Why French schools do so badly on international rankings 🇫🇷 France's Oscar pickspod.foTalking France: Could France really favour the French over foreigners and who derailed the Normandy train?This week we dig into one of Marine Le Pen's contentious proposals and find out whether the far right leader would actually be able to favour French citizens over foreign national residents if she ... 0113
Reposted by Emma PearsonJohn Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 16/09/2026a) hurray for multilingualism, for language learning, and for people willing to have a go in languages they are learning! 2) for those mocking, his french is about the same level as the UK's last ambassador to france 1102
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 15/09/2026Just realised that the issue date on my new carte de séjour is the exact date that I emailed to say (in very polite and formal French, obvs) 'where the HELL is my card, I gave you fingerprints 6 months ago, how long can it take to press print??'. Guess they did read it, after all 480
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 15/09/2026Well well, that is an interesting spelling mistake in a post on X allegedly by French Gilet Jaune organisers. The town is supposed to be Besançon, but that doesn't seem to me to be a mistake that any French speaker would make . . 5112
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 14/09/2026It's a beautiful evening and I have collected the first conkers of the season 😁 180
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 14/09/2026Very terrifying experience this weekend . . . was at a dinner with a woman talking about how she uses ChatGPT; she refers to it as 'he', it has a nickname that they 'decided together' and apparently it's now making jokes in between sharing recipes and politics tips. Dystopian nightmare much? 42207
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026The dog (Robot) now has a street named after him in Lascaux 080
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 11/09/2026Outside @thelocalfrance.bsky.social offices this afternoon is a giant Céline Dion karaoke event - city hall says they expect 10,000 people 🤯 183
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 11/09/2026Immigrants like me (white, with papers) often believe that a far-right government would have only a limited impact on their lives - I believe that is dangerously naive . . .thelocal.frWhat would a Le Pen presidency mean for foreigners in France?From residency permits to citizenship and access to healthcare and jobs, what would a 'President Marine Le Pen' mean for the daily lives of foreigners in France? With the far-right party ahead in the ... 1143
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 10/09/2026New podcast episode 🇫🇷 Jordan Bardella's English adventure and the deepening rifts within the French far right 🇫🇷 How a VIP Eiffel Tower visit caused an unholy row 🇫🇷 And why a new 'tipping culture' is driving the French madpod.foTalking France: New tipping culture drives the French mad and far-right fractures deepenOn the show this week we'll delve into the almighty squabble that ended with the Eiffel Tower closing this week after angry staff walked out.We’ll also look at the growing split in the French far... 090
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 09/09/2026Was watching this video after a reference to Jordan Bardella's 'Inspector Clouseau' accent while speaking English - and I just want to share it because it's very good . . .youtube.comThe ultimate Inspector Clouseau compilationYouTube video by Werner Fraanje 071
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 08/09/2026Beautiful morning for a visit to the 'black spaceship' aka Seine-Saint-Denis' Bobigny préfecture (And they gave me my new carte de séjour 🥳) 2120
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 08/09/2026As an immigrant in France, I had to sign a contract respecting equality between men and women (which obviously I do!) as one of the 'core values of the 🇫🇷 Republic'. In case you're wondering why this is causing such a furore 👇 191
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 08/09/2026Just the 222 days to go until the French presidential election 😬 141
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 07/09/2026"Heat is a political crisis that demands bold political action" 👇theguardian.comWe’re the mayors of Paris, Milan and Phoenix. The heat crisis has us all facing the same question | Emmanuel Grégoire, Giuseppe Sala and Kate GallegoOur three cities are learning from each other about how to protect residents. These climate policies are also public health measures 041
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 07/09/2026The right to vote is indeed très hot #franglais 061
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 04/09/2026Note the Rassemblement National logo in the background - a real pan European gathering of financially dodgy far-right shysters . . . 062
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 03/09/2026If you're following French presidential election news, here's your one-stop-shop for what happens, when, who's who, how the voting works and what the latest polls say 👇thelocal.frLatest polls and key dates - France's 2027 presidential election guideFrom the latest polls to the primaries, via the key dates over the next eight months, how voting works and who is the favourite to win - here's what you need to know about France's presidential electi... 041
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 03/09/2026While French national politics continues to be, ahem, tricky - here's a lovely rentrée letter from the mayor saying that all local kids now get free stationery and goûter (snack) as part of their mission that "scholarly success must never depend on the finances of the family". 🇫🇷 local mayors rock! 391
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 03/09/2026New podcast episode! 🇫🇷 Hijab ban - why the issue of the Muslim headscarf acts as a 'bat signal for lunatics' in France 🇫🇷 Do the French really hate Parisians? 🇫🇷 Why French cheese may taste different this autumn 🇫🇷 And why September is the best month of the year in Francepod.foTalking France: Le Pen's 'vile' election pledge and why French cheese could lose its tasteThis week we look ahead to the 2027 presidential election which is edging closer. A new poll this week suggested there's only one winner, but could Marine Le Pen trip herself up before she gets ove... 130
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 02/09/2026While the ChatGPT bit is obviously v funny, you would struggle to get a 🇫🇷 visa as a content creator, unless you had a really strong business plan and could show that you would make enough 💰 to support yourself. Even if you have private wealth, that's not enough if your business isn't profit making 021
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 02/09/2026The use of pictures like this is very disingenuous - the RN's proposal is not to ban face coverings, veils, burqas, niqab or similar (these are already banned in France) - the proposal is to ban the hijab, the headscarf 051
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 02/09/2026"Maybe I’m clutching at straws. Maybe the election is already won and lost. But if anyone can defeat Marine Le Pen next year, it is Marine Le Pen," writes John Lichfieldthelocal.frOPINION: Le Pen looks unbeatable, but her own arrogance and laziness may be her undoingAs the 2027 French presidential election campaign gets underway in earnest, polls show Marine Le Pen with a commanding lead - John Lichfield looks at whether a far right victory is really a foregone c... 040
Reposted by Emma PearsonRim-Sarah Alouane, Ph.D. @rim-sarah.eurosky.social · 01/09/2026The RN (French main far-right party) is not stupid. They know perfectly well that their proposal to ban the hijab (Islamic headscarf) in public would face serious constitutional and legal obstacles. But the current legal debate, necessary as it is, risks missing the bigger picture. 142
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 31/08/2026Rock en Seine has great bands - but it also has clean toilets, short queues at the bar and a Metro home at the end of the night which makes it, in my old-person opinion, the best festival of all 1101
Reposted by Emma PearsonThe Local France @thelocalfrance.bsky.social · 31/08/2026Big news from The Local France offices - we just shut the window because we were . . . drumroll . . . too cold! First time that's happened since April. Bonne rentrée à tous 1152
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 31/08/2026Franglais language wars reach the vehicle hire sector 😂 03913
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 26/08/2026Shit just got real with this climate crisis - France is being forced to change the rules on AOP cheeses which require cattle to be grass fed (because there is no grass left after the summer of heatwaves and drought)thelocal.frFrance to relax cheese-making rules due to record heatwaves and droughtWidespread drought and record-breaking heatwaves have forced France to relax some of its famously strict rules on cheese production, with authorities announcing on Wednesday special measures for abond... 1165
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 26/08/2026The podcast is back! 🇫🇷 How the extreme summer is affecting life in France 🇫🇷 Can France's part-time firefighters cope with increasingly severe wildfires? 🇫🇷 The big challenges facing the government in la rentrée 🇫🇷 And why French people love to correct your grammarpod.foTalking France: Food prices, strikes: How the hellish summer has hit life in FranceSummer is thankfully almost over and September is upon us, which means it's time for a new series of Talking France.Thanks to you all for tuning in to this podcast, which is produced by the team at... 193
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 25/08/2026Trailer for the new Dix Pour Cent/Call My Agent film . . . This looks fun!youtu.beCall My Agent! The Movie | Official Trailer | NetflixYouTube video by Netflix 181
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 25/08/2026"This is the unspoken rule of European food culture: London for curry, Amsterdam for rijsttafel, Paris for couscous. It is the equation of soft multiculturalism that governs the continent – first you go over and colonise them, then they migrate here, then you get good food" Wonderful piece 👇 252
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 24/08/2026Perhaps my favourite French word of all 'entarteur' - person who throws custard pies at people 😂😍 From the verb 'entarter' - to throw a pie at someone. See also 'enfariner' - to throw flour at someone. It's a mystery to me why English does not have these useful constructions 1102
Reposted by Emma PearsonScheenagh @scheens.bsky.social · 20/08/2026Sodding France Info said I don't need to do this. @thelocalfrance.bsky.social got it right. If you're like me and wanted to avoid e-billing, don't rely on French news... www.thelocal.fr/20260820/exp...thelocal.frExplained: Electronic billing for 'micro-entrepreneurs' in FranceIf you work in France under the 'micro-entrepreneur' (formerly auto entrepreneur) status, here's what you need to know about the new rules on electronic billing that come into effect from September 1s... 052
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 19/08/2026I'm going to be using this a lot! "Unfortunately I am under a bad moon, so I am unable to answer your stupid question/respond to your trivial complaint/ resend the documents I already sent." www.thelocal.fr/20260819/fre... 171
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 17/08/2026Yes, almost 500 people have been arrested over 🇫🇷 wildfires BUT - Not all are for arson & many are released after questioning - The underlying cause is climate change; longer, hotter, dryer summers mean tinderbox conditions that allow 🔥to spread 040
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 15/08/2026At swimming this morning were 2 girls nervous about getting in, kept asking if it was safe, clean. It ended with a Greek-style chorus of swimmers calling 'La Seine est propre! Oui, la Seine est propre maintenant' #ViveLaSeinePropre 1143
Emma Pearson @emmapearson.bsky.social · 14/08/2026That's *Comte* Tête-de-Poubelle to you, Le Monde 🗑 0131