Laurent Ruquier’s “donkey" views on Donald Trump’s behaviour

And that’s a polite euphemism for what has to be one of the most crass public comments this undeniably intelligent man has made during his television and radio career.

You might not be a fan of Laurent Ruquier, but there’s no denying his work ethic and prodigious output.

Just take a look at his (English) Wikipedia profile, “Television and radio host, producer, and satirical comedian. He is also a lyricist, writer, playwright and producer of shows, and owns his own theatre.”

The 53-year-old is probably best known for his weekly show on France 2 - “On n'est pas couché”.

It’s a talk show - a mix of cultural, social, sport and political elements — in which invited guests are given a grilling (or positive critique, depending on the mood of his two “Rottweiler” co-presenters  - currently Yann Moix and Vanessa Burggraf)

Over the years there have been some pretty heated exchanges, particularly when the two Érics - Zemmour and  Naulleau - worked alongside Ruquier. And some celebrities have refused to appear on the programme to promote whatever book, record or film they had just released or participate in a political discussion.

And then there’s the daily programme on RTL radio “Les Grosses Têtes” in which, since 2014 when he moved to the station from Europe 1,  Ruquier is joined by several members of his (faithful) band of “commentators” to take a light-hearted look at some news items and, in a semi-quiz format, determine which famous figures (past and present) might have uttered particular phrases and compete against listeners in an audience challenge.

Laurent Ruquier (screenshot from RTL radio’s "Les Grosses Têtes")

It’s not meant to be too earnest, although sometimes serious issues can be addressed, albeit in a supposedly good-humoured and good-natured way.

But listening to last Sunday’s special (a round-up of the previous week’s highlights) you will have heard Ruquier come out with the most bizarre of statements.

It was almost (but not quite)  a defence of US presidential candidate Donald Trump’s behaviour after the release of a tape in which he had bragged about grabbing women “by the pussy”, the media reaction there had been to the tape and Trump’s subsequent “locker room talk” apology.

“Heaven knows, I’m not for Trump,” Ruquier said (at around 18 minutes into the programme)…making it easy for listeners to guess that there was about to be some sort of justification for the US presidential candidate’s conduct.

“But frankly I’ll defend him - just a little. I think what was done to him last week was disgusting”, he continued, seemingly swallowing Trump’s line that he had in fact been the “victim”.

“If you take any guy who is talking to another guy and record them while they’re talking about women, there would have been exactly the same result.” (Does that argument sound familiar?)

“And the same is true for two women talking about men.” (Add your own exclamation marks).

Now - purely opinion - and not a particularly well-informed one at that. But where exactly does Ruquier get his valuable information from?

First up - to state the obvious - he’s a man.

So as such, even though he is a gay man, he cannot possibly have had  “all-girl chats” - or even know how they talk about men and/or sex when there’s no man around.

Somehow though, he seems not to have grasped that fact - because…?

Well, you answer it.

Then there’s the locker-room talk aspect: as though such language and behaviour is somehow acceptable, excusable, understandable and…whatever this might mean… “normal”.

The two women invited to participate in that particular edition of the show, former Brazilian model turned TV presenter Cristina Cordula and US-born French, singer, actress, director and model (gasp - a “multi-talent”) Arielle Dombasle weren’t entirely (to put it mildly) in agreement with his “analysis”.

But, for the sake of humour and entertainment, their views were dismissed by the show’s host and the other male panellists as they, in time-honoured tradition, maintained that women’s conversations were “just as bad, if not worse.”

M Ruquier - from one man to another, might I suggest that you keep away from a subject about which you can have little or no real knowledge and, while you’re at it, take a listen to the speech US first lady Michelle Obama made in New England last Thursday.

Just in case you missed it, here it is…. in its entirety.



It should, hopefully, make you realise that not only are you very wrong. It might also help you understand that a microphone and a celebrity status do not give you the right to express views that are so ill thought-out and have no substance.

Friday’s French music break - Imany, “Don’t be so shy”

August 26, 2016

It hasn’t been easy to find a video to accompany this week’s Friday’s French music break that isn’t, well,  almost semi pornographic.

Little wonder really given the title, feel and not exactly concealed sexual nature of the song.

But hey.

It’s worth sharing because “Don’t be so shy”, the latest single by former French model Imany (Nadia Mladjao) and remixed by Moscow-based House and Deep House DJs Filatov & Karas (Dmitry Filatov and Alex Osokin) to become an upbeat European-wide hit which has topped the charts in several countries, is both contagious and a sumptuous delight.

Imany (screenshot Le Grand Studio, RTL)

This version (you can listen to it here) of “Don’t be so shy” combines class of her sublime and evocative voice with the remix which does the song complete justice.

The song originally featured on the soundtrack of the 2014 film “Sous les jupes des filles” (or “French woman”) and you can hear an excerpt towards the end of this trailer (yes, you’re really being treated to three different versions of the same song this week).

This isn’t the first time Imany has featured on Friday’s French music break (FFMB).

Back in 2011, she exploded on to the French music scene with her debut single, “You will never know”, a song which brought parallels with US singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman and had both commercial and critical success.

Enough words though.

As ever, FFMB is all about the music and the artist - sometimes good, sometimes bad.

Or in this case…excellent.

And here’s Imany with an acoustic version of "Don't be so shy" recorded in the studios of RTL radio.

Enjoy.

You will.

Carla Bruni-Sarkozy "stands by her man"

It was one of those Tammy Wynette moments; the former top model-cum singer, actress and one-term France's first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy appearing on RTL radio on Wednesday morning, close to tears and almost (but not quite) unable to speak.

The performance of what some might unfairly say to be true Oscar-nomination proportions came as Bruni-Sarkozy responded to a question about a  judge's decision last week to open a criminal investigation into her husband (the former president Nicolas Sarkozy just in case you were unaware) and whether there had been an "abuse of weakness" in his alleged "dealings" with the elderly L’Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt.

Of course Bruni-Sarkozy was really on the show to promote her soon-to-be released album (April 1 - and that's no Fool) "Little French songs".

But the pain she "and the whole family" is suffering and her desire for the truth to be told are also doing the rounds in a series of virtual copy-and-paste interviews in some of the French national dailies.

"It is so unimaginable that this man could abuse the weakness of a woman who is the same age as his mother," said the singer in a faltering voice.

 "... I do not know what to say...it's unthinkable. "



Yes, it was a radio moment rich in emotion and one which perhaps brought a lump to the throat and made you want to reach for your hanky.

While Bruni-Sarkozy was struggling to put on a brave public face, her husband, who has vowed "to clear his name over the allegations", was out and about cracking jokes while on a visit to Belgium the very same day.

And any suggestion that this might be Bruni-Sarkozy demonstrating "thespian" qualities in an attempt to influence anyone and elicit sympathy (and sales) is just...well small-minded.

She's a woman in love (oh no, the cue for yet another song - go away Barbra, this is Tammy's gig).

TAMMY!

Laura Hayoun appears on BFM TV to mark World Down Syndrome Day

Laura Hayoun with "Premiere edition" co-anchors Christophe Delay and Pascale de La Tour du Pin (screenshot BFM TV)

 
BFM TV might not be your favourite French television channel, but there's no doubting its success.

Launched in 2005, it's freely available on TNT (digital television) satellite and cable and has become, according to industry figures, the leading news network in France - a label it's more than happy to share with viewers.

It operates on the same principle as CNN, delivering rolling news at a fast pace (by French standards) sometimes giving extensive coverage to breaking stories to the extent that nothing much seems to be happening a great deal of the time.

You know the sort of thing: President's 'plane arrives somewhere and there's a BFM TV journalist (among the throng) on-hand waiting to describe every breath-taking moment as the air-stairs are manœuvred into position, the door opens and he (or sometimes she) makes an appearance before pressing the flesh with the reception committee.

Zzzzzz.

Yes sometimes rolling news and the requirement to fill air time produces less-than magnificent viewing.

Every weekday morning "Premiere edition", hosted by co-anchors Christophe Delay and Pascale de La Tour du Pin (you might think that something of a mouthful but have pity on her husband Jean-Philippe, comte de La Tour du Pin Chambly de La Charce) brings viewers the news as we've all come to "love and accept" it - bite-size and easily digestible.

There's a mix of conviviality with professionalism, but you probably shouldn't watch more than 15 minutes otherwise you'll discover yourself in "Groundhog Day" territory because that's the nature of rolling news.

Except on Thursday something different happened, proving that BFM can indeed sometimes get things very right.

Laura Hayoun (screenshot BFM TV)

March 21 was the eighth anniversary of World Down Syndrome Day, an event which the channel was determined to mark by inviting 19-year-old Laura Hayoun on to the show and having her read some the eight o'clock headlines alongside La Tour du Pin.

It was a great and heartwarming television moment and one to be repeated by Hayoun who has also been invited to appear on Alessandra Sublet's "C à vous" on France 5 and has  interviewed journalist Yves Calvi on his programme on RTL radio.

And BFM TV will be airing a special "day in the life" report on Hayoun on Saturday evening's "7 jour BFM" show.



Behind the scenes -  a report on the preparations for going live.

What next for François Hollande's camel?

You might well have seen the pictures over the weekend - delighted Malians welcoming their all-conquering hero, the French president François Hollande, during his visit to Timbuktu.

Unable to contain their joy they smiled, danced, sang and...made him an offer he couldn't refuse.

A camel.

(screenshot from news report)

"I will use it as a means of transportation as often as possible," quipped Hollande, appearing somewhat fazed by the gift and brandishing a whip he had also been given (for training purposes of course).

Mind you, it's remarkable microphones managed to pick up any of his response above the bellowing protests of the young animal lying in front of him, ready for its new "mission".



Twitter of course had a field day with the story. There were, unsurprisingly perhaps, more than a just few (unkind) references to France's first lady Valérie Trierweiler appearing among the responses along the lines of "Malians have offered Hollande a camel. Didn't anyone tell them he already has one at home?" and "François Hollande receives a camel as a present on his arrival in Mali. Won't Valérie be jealous?"

The mainstream media picked up on Hollande's quip, detailed how the animal had now been elevated to the status of "presidential camel" but nonetheless would have to go through the same procedure as any other animal being imported into France from Mali.

After all this would also be "un chameau normal pour un président normal" was the tone.

It would spend a couple of weeks in the zoo in the Malian capital Bamako, reported RTL radio, followed by a medical, a period of quarantine and vaccinations before being flown to France.

But now comes the news that could put the proverbial spanner in the works for a somewhat unusual presidential pet: the camel offered to Hollande was allegedly a stolen one.

A man, currently living in a refugee camp in Mali has come forward saying he was the original owner, the animal had been stolen from him and he wants it back.

No official word from the Elysée palace as to the fate of the camel...and no activity on Valérie Trierweiler's Twitter account to give us all the scoop.

Incomplete faction - Paris mayor announces new Marchelib' shoe sharing scheme

Do you live in or around Paris? Or are you thinking of a trip to the French capital?

Well here's some news for all those trying to make their way around the City of Light.

The mayor of Paris, Bertrand Delanoë, has plans to make it easier for you.

A bit wobbly on two wheels and still unsure as to whether you can defend yourself in the precarious bicycle lanes that have been squeezed out of the existing roads?

Fed up of going bumper-to-bumper and getting nowhere slowly on the Boulevard Périphérique, the ring road separating Paris from its suburbs?

Not keen on suffering unwanted, almost sexual, encounters while sardined into the Métro?

Delanoë,  has the answer.

First he gave us Vélib', the bicycle sharing system launched in the summer of 2007.

Then Delanoë introduced the electric car sharing Autolib' programme guaranteed to annoy any driver stuck behind one of those flippin' dinky toys and render even the most mild-mannered motorist (not easy in Paris) barmy.

And now he's planning to go one step further with the world's first ever shoe sharing scheme - Marchelib'.

The idea is a simple one: using the same pick up and drop off stations already available for Velib', Parisians, out-of-towners, visitors - in fact just about everyone - will be able to grab a pair of walking shoes or boots and strut their stuff happily through the City of Light.

The announcement came on Monday as part of a package of measures aimed at trying to reduce pollution levels in Paris - still too high at certain times of the year and which contravene EU regulations - and simultaneously piss off the maximum number of motorists.

Among the proposals are a reduction of the speed limit on the ever-flowing (as if) Boulevard Périphérique from 80km/h to 70km/h (as if), a ban all cars older than 17 years from the city centre (and drivers with less than 17 years of experience), the introduction of a péage, or toll, on the motorways immediately surrounding the capital to limit the number of trucks and the launch of Marchelib'.

"These propositions represent a new step in our battle against pollution," Delanoë said on RTL radio.

"Parisians have changed their habits in the past decade because we've dared (to introduce progressive policies) but pollution still remains a scourge," he continued.

Delanoë added that Marchelib' would not only help cut drastically the levels of pollution, it would also make Parisians fitter, healthier and give a boost to the economy by insisting that the shoes supplied would only be "Made in France".

The mayor, a prominent member of the Socialist party, said he would be talking to the government minister in charge of industrial renewal, Arnaud Montebourg, to help draw up a list of French cobblers who could meet the new schemes requirements.

Time to strut your stuff.

Take it away Nancy!