Best of World Radio Paris (WRP)

Series produced by Ian Callen

The latest in French sports, with Parker Songco.

School is in session on this episode of Parentalité as hosts Joelle Benoliel, Rachelle Chapman and Meg Gerner chat with our guest Derek Ferguson, Scottish dad and director of The Roaming Schoolhouse.

TRS offers after-school enrichment, spoken entirely in English, for bilingual students. We discuss the evolution of TRS, and its mission to make learning in English fun and engaging. We also touch on some of the particularities of the French education system, and the challenges of getting your child into college/lycée with international sections.

Parentalité is a collaboration between Message Paris, an association helping anglophone parents and caretakers of children connect in Île de France, and World Radio Paris. ARBL Murray (Alex Brook Lynn produced this episode for World Radio Paris.

To find out more about Message Paris, go to https://www.messageparis.org

To find out more about WRP or donate, visit https://worldradioparis.org/donate/

Polly Watton sat with Kay Bourgine of CirclesongsParis to find out more about their activities.

In this episode of Lost in Frenchlation, hosts ARBL Murray (Alex Brook Lynn) and Manon Kerjean sit down with filmmaker Vladimir Rodionov at the Luminor Theater during a special Valentine’s Day screening of his romantic comedy Anges & Cie (Angels & Company / Angels Inc.).

Set in a world where everyone has a personal angel, the film treats love like a workplace: angels are assigned “clients,” they follow you through every awkward, intimate moment, and they try (sometimes badly) to steer your life from above. At the center are two almost-lovers who keep colliding and missing each other, while their angels clash like rivals in a buddy comedy. But what happens when a few angels go off-script and decide to let love get messy on its own?

Vladimir breaks down the long road of making a first feature (nearly a decade from idea to release), why he’s obsessed with “high concept” premises you can sum up in one sentence (“what if angels were real?”), and how he built a world where angels operate like a bureaucratic company: hovering behind you, influencing choices, and sometimes giving truly terrible advice.

The conversation goes deeper than the rom-com label: intuition vs. destiny, “signs” that kept him going while the film was hard to finance/cast, whether a darker sequel could exist, and how love can be a surprise that pulls you outside your bubble. They also talk about modern romance in the age of apps (love as an “algorithm” vs. chaos), how movies shape the way we understand love, and what French cinema offers beyond couple-dom: friendship, empathy, and stories for anyone spending Valentine’s Day solo.

Please consider donating to World Radio Paris so we can continue to make these radio shows and podcasts https://worldradioparis.org/donate/

For more information on Lost in Frenchlation, visit https://lostinfrenchlation.com

Happy Valentine's Day to all the couples, the lovers or anybody who enjoys good food, whether it's with someone else or by themselves.

In this episode of Cups and Dishes, listen to host Wafa Jawad as she tells you about the mnay ways to enjoy this day, usually dedicated to companionship and caring for another.

Wafa tells you about concepts like commensality, she examines the scientific effects of sharing a meal with someone and also lets you know how to make the most out of February 14 if you're a loner. After all, the one person you really should care for first and foremost... is yourself!

Spotlight on France, episode 140 © RFI, airs on WRP every two weeks.

This week:

Recent data shows one in two university students in France are skipping a meal each day and relying on food handouts. In response, the government is extending a 1-euro meal scheme – introduced during Covid for those on bursaries – to all university students as of May. Student union rep Marian Bloquet outlines why the problems go far beyond food. We also report from the Cop1ne community kitchen in Paris. Run by students for students, it provides cheap, home-cooked food, but also company and solidarity. (Listen @3'20'')

As France prepares to ban children from social media, kids weigh in on their use of the platforms and how they would like to see them regulated. Cybersecurity expert Olivier Blazy considers the technical challenges and privacy issues raised by such a ban. (Listen @20'20'')

The adventurous life of the French explorer Alexandra David-Néel, who in the winter of 1924 became the first European woman to reach Lhasa, Tibet's "forbidden city". (Listen @14'10'')

Episode mixed by Cecile Pompeani.

Spotlight on France is a podcast from Radio France International. Find us on rfienglish.com,

In this episode, host Polly Watton provides an insight into the detrimental environmental effects of the fast fashion indsutry.

Wild Angles is a creative collective and we share our stories and memories around a theme which is different for every episode. We accompany our thoughts with a song or piece of music that we relate to the episode theme.

This first episode is called SAND.

Listen to Lindsey discuss childcare with Lise Scott.

WRP broadcasts The New Paris twice a month on the airwaves.

If you like The New Paris, please subscribe to it via its own podcast feed.