Baking yourself in a tanning booth remains a popular activity among the vain and pasty of Caucasian descent, despite increasing health warnings. But at the other end of the spectrum, skin tempering practices are just as risky, and ever growing in popularity. Read more...

According to socialist lawmaker René Dosière, French President Nicolas Sarkozy had a 245,772 euro shower installed for his personal use for a one day summit in Paris’ Grand Palais. The figure, although not quite accurate, is just one of many reports that have emerged about the Sarkozy government’s extravagant spending. Read more...

These labourers, working on station platforms in the Paris metro, are illegal immigrants. The conditions they work in, shown in the following videos, are simply deplorable. Read more and watch the video...

The prospect of Nicolas Sarkozy's 23 year-old undergraduate son being catapulted to the head of a major public agency has sparked widespread accusations of favouritism both at home and abroad. Our Observers in Gabon and China give their views on Sarkozy's latest imperial move. Read more...

It's not unusual for companies in Libya to publicly well-wish "Brother and leader of the Revolution", Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. Except when it's... French military aviation company Dassault Aviation. Read more.

If you've never heard of Skins Parties, chances are you're a dinosaur of 25 or over. Directly inspired by the British teen drama "Skins", the parties have been described as the craziest thing in French nightlife, where girls are loose and drugs roam free. But are they really all they are made up to be, or have they turned into commercialized gigs? Read more...

On Saturday, September 26 at 4pm sharp 11 French cities hosted the third edition of France's national « Kiss In », an informal gay rights movements where gay and lesbian couples assemble in a crowded public spot to kiss for all to see.

Charal's slogan, « With us, you'll always love meat », doesn't go down well with animal-rights agroup L214. They have accused the No.1 French meat producer of cruelty to animals and not respecting bovine slaughter regulations. To prove their point, one of its members penetrated a Charal slaughterhouse undercover and filmed what he saw. Read more and watch the video...

All eyes were on the massive migrant camp in Calais, nicknamed the “jungle” by its occupants, when it was dismantled on Tuesday. Scenes of desperate-looking immigrants watching their scarce belongings razed by French riot police were caught on camera by French and British TV. Thirty kilometres from there, another "jungle" suffered the same fate, only this time no-one was watching. Read more…

How often does your MP attend parliament? And when attending, does he or she do anything? A French website has been designed to answer precisely those questions, and spare constituents the hassle of having to frisk government records. Read more...