Author: France 24

Beloved children’s character Winnie the Pooh, who ambled into the world in 1926 in a book written by English author AA Milne and illustrated by EH Shepard, is turning 100. Disney, which now holds the rights to the self-described bear of “very little brain” and his lovable pals, is holding a year-long celebration in Pooh’s honour.

A British warship is on its way to Cyprus. More than a week ago, a British Royal Air Force base was hit by an Iranian-made drone. The opposition criticizes the UK’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer for taking too long to send reinforcements. The country’s ministry of Defence defended its actions saying the Royal Navy worked hard to complete six weeks’ of work in 6 days.

Jessie Buckley takes the title role in Maggie Gyllenhaal’s 21st-century retelling of a 1930s silent movie, and film critic Emma Jones explains why her performance alone is worth the ticket price. We also discuss some of the criticism the film has received for its feminist stance and assess Christian Bale’s turn as the lab-made monster. Actor-director Andrea di Stefano offers a very personal story in “Il Maestro”, plunging us into the Italian tennis scene of the 1980s, with Pierfrancesco Favino as a troubled, charismatic coach. Meanwhile, Cherien Dabis’ sweeping epic “All That’s Left of You” sees the actor-director weaving her…

Jules Segers won the bronze medal in the Super-G, while Aurélie Richard took silver. France now has a total of five medals.

As the Iran war continues to disrupt oil supplies from the Middle East, Paris hosted a summit aiming to boost the use of civilian nuclear energy.  Announcing a plan to provide a €200 million guarantee for innovative nuclear technologies, European Commission President Usrula von der Leyen said it was a strategic mistake for the continent to reduce the share of nuclear power in its energy mix. 

“The Bechdel Test” started as a joke in one of her comic strips before becoming one of the most famous measures of gender representation in film. Now, acclaimed American cartoonist Alison Bechdel has joined forces with French critic Iris Brey for their new essay, “La Véritable Histoire du test de Bechdel”. FRANCE 24’s Charli James speaks with Bechdel about the true story behind the test, how it feels when your name becomes more famous than you, and how she uses humour to empower the queer community in the Trump era.

Australia on Tuesday granted humanitarian visas to five Iranian women soccer players after they sought asylum, ​fearing persecution on their return home for their refusal to sing the national anthem at an Asia Cup match. “Australians have been moved by the plight of these brave women,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told a news conference in Canberra  a day after police helped extract the women from their Iranian government handlers.

RC Lens gave Metz no chance (3-0). This victory puts them just one point behind PSG with nine games left to play.

Crude oil prices pulled back sharply after brushing $120 per barrel earlier on Monday.  After staying around $100 dollars for most of the day, both Brent and WTI benchmarks reversed course on comments from Donald Trump suggesting that the end was near for the US – Israeli war on Iran.  As Gulf countries started cutting production amid a rapid decrease in available storage space, consumers have already started seeing rising fuel prices. 

As the conflict in the Middle East engulfs Lebanon, with air strikes and evacuation orders once again shaking the foundations of society, we hear from Wissam Charaf and Zeid Hamdan, two Lebanese artists grappling with this moment of crisis. Filmmaker Wissam Charaf joins us by video link from Beirut to reflect on the past seven years and how they have driven many artists to flee the country.