Royal Palace Podcast

Every six years, voters in 34,935 municipalities elect city councilors, who then go on to elect their mayor. This year, La France Insoumise made significant gains in key areas, while the Socialist Party failed to rise to the occasion in the largest cities. We discuss the results of the first of two rounds and explain how the system works in France.

Luxury brands are big business in France. Although most people cannot afford a coveted Birkin bag, a handbag that costs more than some of France’s best-selling compact hatchbacks, or even a bottle of the “mass-market” Moët & Chandon champagne, their owners wield outsized influence over French politics. One notable example is Bernard Arnault, the billionaire CEO of LVMH, who owns the unprofitable and subsidized newspaper Le Parisien, as well as Les Echos and Paris Match. We are joined by Rachel and Nancy to discuss these luxury brands, their labor practices, the polémique around fast fashion, and their contribution to the consumerism they are sometimes said to oppose.

After the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, the United States is doubling down on its threats to seize Greenland. You might expect French and European leaders to start questioning their alliance with Washington. Instead, as we discuss with our guest Flo, Europe has never been closer to the US, and the tide seems unlikely to turn anytime soon.

In this episode, we’re joined by our cultural correspondent to discuss the latest developments on the Louvre heist, the so-called budget “crisis,” social security, and layoffs in strategic sectors.

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On the 19th of October 2025, a group of unarmed thieves broke into the famous Louvre Art Museum, stealing several high-value pieces. It didn't take long for politicans in charge to deflect responsability for decades of underfunding, deferred maintence, understaffing and the poor working conditions which the labor unions have long denounced. Featuring our new culture correspondent, we discuss the daring robbery, the reactions to it, and our cultural obsession with art heists.

Thumbnail: Quirinale.it, Attribution, via Wikimedia Commons