As Republicans and Trump supporters in particular celebrate the first 100 days of the the new Trump administration, we travel to Texas to talk to our colleague Evelyne, French born naturalised American, who's been living in Houston for many years, as she shares her thoughts and feelings about the present as well as her hopes and fears for the future in the new reality that is Trump's version of America First.

Today we're talking about the thought-provoking Netflix series Adolescence, which in only four short weeks since its release has been viewed in millions of homes in 70 different countries, and sparked serious public debate as well as political reactions, with the UK Prime Minister himself talking about it in the media. So what is all the fuss about. We asked our colleague Sophie, who was recently recommended the series by a close friend, to give us her take on this mini-series sensation.

Today our podcast is about social media and its effect on our children, toddlers, teenagers or young adults. Colleagues Sue and Mireille share experiences about dealing with the impact of social media on the family and family life and how to handle things when influencers affect habits and behaviour in their children.

Are you a 'baby boomer', a millennial perhaps, or maybe a recently graduated "gen Z".  And why does it even matter?  Our guest contributor this month, Inger, is going to take a quick, fun dive into the quirks, facts, and history of people from different generations and share her own feelings about what makes the generational gap so, well ... engaging !

Welcome to the first episode of the year.

Today's subject is maternity leave and the work life balance, as we hear from Sophie, our colleague, who having just experienced maternity leave, came back to work recently and had to strike a new balance in her life with two children and, of course, a career.

The sentences fell this morning in the Mazan rape trial that has shocked the nation and dramatically shifted the way France is talking about rape, rapists and their victims.  

Today in conversation Sue & Sandra honour the heroine at the centre of this traumatic story : Gisèle Pelicot, who braved public scrutiny to make sure that shame swapped sides.

Sue mentions a tribune in the newspaper Libération.

https://www.liberation.fr/idees-et-debats/tribunes/proces-des-viols-de-mazan-plus-de-200-hommes-signent-une-feuille-de-route-contre-la-domination-masculine-20240921_TXUFM4QHOVAD7BOALPIKBKD6HE/

This week's podcast, where Sus is in conversation with William, is about the YouTuber Inoxtag who has made a movie called Kaizen, all about his ascension of Everest and what has happened since. It's an extraordinary thing to watch, particularly if you have no interest in YouTubers; so listen up, and, like Sue, you might just be surprised.

With less than 3 weeks to go before the election in the US, we talk again to Jonathan our British expat living in Cincinnati, just down the road from Springfield Ohio, about the succession of amazing events since we last spoke six months ago and we explore different scenarios in the event of Republican or Democrat victory.

Oasis, the famous British rock band, have announced a UK comeback tour for 2025.  The announcement has been met with both enthusiasm & criticism about ticketing from fans and press speculation about the motivation behind their revival fifteen years after they disbanded amid acrimony.  Today we check in with Cyril, himself a musician, who tells us about the band and their music and why he for one is looking forward to their return.

As the Olympic Torch arrives in Paris on Bastille day, and fireworks and drones over the Eiffel Tower join a chorus of growing excitement in the run-up for the Olympic Games, we hear from Hannah, a Team US judoka, about the disappointments, sacrifices and the rewards of top level athletes who prepare for the Olympic Games.