Latest news with #ShakespeareAndCompany
The National
11-07-2025
- The National
Splurging on food, morning arrivals and other hacks that transformed the way I travel
What does it mean to be well travelled? Is it about viewing each city like a military planner, as a place to be conquered by ticking off every landmark at high speed? Or is it about sticking to the tried-and-tested sights, just to avoid FOMO after returning home? As someone who travels regularly for work and pleasure, I've come to see these journeys as education and escape. To glean the best of both, I've picked up habits from experience and fellow travellers. Some are common sense, but they're easy to overlook in the rush and excitement of planning a summer adventure. I've found they provide enough structure and spontaneity to make each trip memorable. 1. Pre-ironing hack One of the best tips I've gained from living in the UAE – and this probably applies to most people in the region – is what I call the pre-ironing hack. Here's how it works: take your travel clothes to your local laundromat and tell them you're going on a trip. 'I'm travelling' acts as a kind of code to the staff. After the washing and ironing they'll often fold everything neatly, separate your shirts, trousers and socks, and pack them in plastic sheets ready for your suitcase. This is normally done at no extra cost. 2. Have a loose plan My most memorable trips have had plans that were intentionally loose. I usually choose a couple of things I absolutely want to do – such as visiting the Shakespeare and Company bookshop in Paris or the famous Hansa recording studios in Berlin when I'm visiting those cities. But the rest of the itinerary is intentionally left open. That allows for surprise: a wrong turn that leads me to an unexpected gem of a neighbourhood, or stumbling across a gallery or cafe that wasn't on any list. The joy comes from not crossing things off, but allowing each day to unfold. 3. Time your arrival First impressions count, especially when arriving in a new city. A rule I've been trying to follow over the years is to avoid landing in the middle of the night. It just sets the wrong tone. I remember arriving in Tbilisi at 3am. It was cold and raining. The streets seemed deserted, the buildings loomed menacingly and there was an ominous energy that hung in the air. It took me a full day to shake off that feeling which, of course, had more to do with me than the beautiful city itself. Now, if I can help it, I arrive in the morning. I love seeing people on their way to work, the morning traffic and the general freshness of a city on the cusp of a new day. It gives you a better read on the place and a first glimpse of a city moving to its own rhythm. 4. Read a book set in the city Something I've been trying to do more of, especially when I'm in a city for more than a few days, is to read a novel set in that place. In Istanbul, I was reading Orhan Pamuk 's My Name is Red, while in Stockholm it was the Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy of thrillers. The stories may be fictional or outlandish, but they offer a distinctive feeling for the place that you can't find in any guidebook, through the use of real locations and landmarks, that stays with you long after you leave. 5. Use the right translation apps Mobile translation apps have developed to such an extent that they are essential travel companions. On a recent trip to Shenzhen, the image translation feature that is standard on most phones was helpful for navigating Mandarin – just point your camera and the entire page appears in English. The real surprise, however, is how these tools can spark connection. I've had full conversations using the translation feature where we would speak on the phone and it translates into our respective languages. There's laughter, curiosity and mild frustration – especially when haggling in a market. At the same time, it's worth knowing which apps don't work in particular destinations. In China, for instance, WhatsApp, Google and even Apple Pay can be unreliable or entirely blocked. Research local alternatives in advance, such as the brilliantly functional Alipay and Didi – the latter a ride share platform widely used in mainland China. 6. Research eSIMs in advance Your phone in 2025 has become your translator, guidebook and wallet. Hence, the need for good amount of data. Do your homework on which eSIM packages to acquire, ideally before you take off. Look for packages with the right balance of reliable local speeds, enough data and, ideally, coverage in multiple destinations. 7. Stay just outside the centre The closer you are to the centre, the less likely you are to experience the pulse of a city. If you have the time to stay just outside it – ideally in a residential area – you gain a more natural, calmer and most likely a cheaper experience of the place. In Copenhagen, I stayed in Norrebro, a neighbourhood just outside the centre. It was lovely. Families used the parks, people cycled with their children and there was a genuine calmness to the streets. I felt slightly less like a visitor and more like a local. 8. Ask taxi drivers where to eat A universal rule of travel is that cab drivers are among the best culinary guides. They know where locals go, what's open late and what's worth the detour. Some of my best meals started with a query from the back seat of a cab about the best place to try a local delicacy. Chances are it is a joint off the beaten track, without English menus or press coverage. Trust cabbies more than the bloggers. 9. Always eat well A rule I carry from my father: save money on everything else but never on food. A good meal while travelling isn't just nourishment, it's a mood booster. There's no point standing in front of the Mona Lisa in the Louvre in Paris while famished – chances are you will remember the hunger more than the masterpiece. When people talk about trips, rather than the art and architecture, they remember the meals and how they made them feel.
Daily Mail
03-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Picture This: Walking the streets of Paris, one shopfront at a time
Paris Shopfronts: Illustrations of the City's Best-Loved Boutiques, Brasseries, Bars and More by Joel Holland and Vivian Song (Prestel £25, 176pp) For those with a penchant for quaint city gems and chic French boutiques, Paris Shopfronts will go down a treat. Flipping through the pages instantly transports you to a casual wander along the streets of Paris. From Le Café des Chats, home to both feline residents and delectable foods, to Coco Chanel's couture house, Chanel 31 rue Cambon, and bibliophile favourite Shakespeare and Company Bookshop (pictured), readers can revel in a vast array of destinations. The French capital is known for exquisite boutiques and department stores, and Paris Shopfronts gifts a detailed history of these - beautifully presented alongside Joel Holland's characterful illustrations. For many, the likes of the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre Museum are first to mind when it comes to Paris, but this extensive collection of shopfronts instead brings hidden treasures to the forefront. Each and every one radiates a distinct personality, and a hint of je ne sais quoi with which I am obsessed.
Irish Times
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Jane Austen Wrecked My Life director Laura Piani: ‘I didn't want to do a film about a woman who is saved by a man'
Shakespeare and Company , the Paris bookshop, is celebrated for its literary heritage and cultural influence. Even its location is cool. Founded in 1951 by the late George Whitman, the store sits on the Left Bank of the Seine, opposite Notre Dame Cathedral, a refuge and meeting point for generations of writers, poets and thinkers. It's not just a bookseller but a thriving literary space, offering free lodging to aspiring writers – known as Tumbleweeds – in exchange for help around the store. One such weed is Laura Piani, the French writer-director of the new film Jane Austen Wrecked My Life, who has chronicled Whitman's handover to his daughter, Sylvia. From the get-go it was an adventure. 'It all started in a bathroom of a bar in Rome, where I was studying cinema and literature,' Piani says. 'I met a depressed Canadian guy, an artist who became one of my closest friends, and who was staying in Shakespeare and Company for many months, between his travels. READ MORE 'When I came back from Rome I went there. I met Sylvia and George Whitman. I became friends with her. She was my age. And, like anybody who ever met George, I was completely infatuated with him, because he was so clever.' Piani worked at Shakespeare and Company while studying screenwriting at the European Conservatory of Audiovisual Writing . She was in the inaugural cohort of the showrunner course at La Fémis , France's premiere film school, and has subsequently written for both television and cinema, including the crime show Spiral and the pre-Tár woman-conductor drama Philharmonia. Her writing continues to engage with literature and with those old bohemian friends. 'Many years after that first meeting, when I was doing my PhD, I came back to work in the bookshop,' she says. 'I was doing the night shift. It was a very interesting crowd. The people who worked there were all aspiring writers, actors and musicians. I was trying to become a scriptwriter. We were talking about poetry and literature. We were all dreamers.' At Shakespeare and Company (whose name Whitman took from the bookshop opened nearby, in 1919, by Sylvia Beach, first publisher of James Joyce's Ulysses) Piani learned how, after asking one or two questions, to identify the book that might just change a customer's life. It's a skill she uses to craft her fictional characters and find their back stories. The bookstore and its artistic community feature prominently in Jane Austen Wrecked My Life, the title of which acknowledges one of Piani's great passions. 'I discovered Jane when I was a teenager,' she says. 'She's not something that you learn at school in France. She's famous, but not as famous as in the anglophone countries. But I was a very, very active reader, and I wanted to read love stories. I remember looking for kisses and sex scenes. Jane Austen Wrecked My Life: Camille Rutherford as Agathe in Laura Piani's film 'When I was in my 20s, at Shakespeare and Company, I was confident enough to reread Jane Austen in English, and read the ones that I didn't read when I was a teenager. That's when I got the humour, the tenderness and the political questions that she was raising. Because women had to get married to survive, but it was in their hands. Suddenly, they were allowed to choose.' Piani's film puts a clever spin on the Austen-influenced romcom. It's a much-needed revival for a genre that, despite having yielded It Happened One Night, His Girl Friday and When Harry Met Sally, has been largely discarded by Hollywood and disparaged by others. 'I think that says a lot about them,' the film-maker says. 'I don't know how things are in Ireland, but in France right now, even more than love stories, we need stories of consolation. 'I do feel there is a common and shared joy in the romcom. A big reason for me to make the film was for friends who are stuck watching the same romcoms from the 1990s. You don't need to be sophisticated when you start to do something as long as it comes from a very sincere and organic place. I wanted to give something to the people I love.' Leaving aside the 17 adaptations (and counting) of Pride and Prejudice since 1938, there is a strong argument for positioning Austen as the godmother of the modern romcom. Bridget Jones's Diary, from 2001, leant into Colin Firth's post-Austen celebrity; Clueless seamlessly relocated Emma to 1990s Beverly Hills; Fire Island, from 2022, repopulates Pride and Prejudice with gay men; and Austenland, from 2013, adapts a classic romantic misunderstanding to a Regency theme-park setting. Austen is, as Piani notes, a universally acknowledged cultural force. 'I've found Jane Austen societies everywhere, in every single country from Greece to Spain to Italy,' the writer-director says. 'It gives me a big hope for humanity, because these people come together and talk about literature and poetry everywhere. She belongs to everyone. She's timeless. And the world needs romance that is not marketed product for streaming platforms.' Jane Austen Wrecked My Life: Pablo Pauly as Félix and Camille Rutherford as Agathe in Laura Piani's film Jane Austen Wrecked My Life follows Agathe (Camille Rutherford), a clumsy yet endearing Parisian bookseller at Shakespeare and Company. Despite her passion for literature and her dreams of becoming a writer, Agathe is blocked, both creatively and romantically. Her best friend, Félix (Pablo Pauly), secretly submits her work to the Jane Austen Writers' Residency in England, leading to her unexpected acceptance. At the retreat Agathe encounters the preoccupied Oliver (Charlie Anson), a brooding Austen descendant, igniting a complex romantic triangle between him – a great-great-great-nephew of the writer – and her chum Félix. Who will Agathe blame for this predicament and all its complications? 'When you try to approach a romcom after the masterpieces that were made already, you need to think about what you can bring on the table – something a little bit new without being pretentious,' Piani says. 'A love triangle has worked since the beginning of dramatology. I wanted to have dance as a turning point and all these things that consciously we wait for. But I did not want to do a film about a woman who is saved by a man. I believe in love, but not that. I wanted her to have this goal of becoming a writer. I allowed myself to play with the cultural differences between France and England without being too obvious.' The rival suitors are notably not as unsuitable as many of Austen's failed gentlemen callers. Félix is a flirt, but he's not a cad like George Wickham in Pride and Prejudice. Neither character is as pretentious as the Emma reject Mr Elton or as overbearing as the other Emma reject, Mr Knightley. 'I didn't want men who were seducers,' Piani says. 'I wanted the audience to love both suitors. Félix sincerely loves women. I took my cues from Austen. Because Mr Darcy is the opposite of an alpha or toxic male. I tried to be meta as much as I could. The fact that Jane Austen was sharing her bed with her sister when she died moved me a lot. So I brought a sister into the story.' Austen fans will (gleefully) welcome the parallels between Rutherford's lovelorn Agathe and Anne Elliot, the protagonist of Persuasion. Just as the stoic Anne aches for Captain Wentworth, whom she once rejected, Agathe, too, is in a self-imposed limbo. Unsurprisingly, Anne is also the Austen character whom Piani feels closest to. 'The one that moved me the most was Persuasion,' she says. 'I think it's because it's darker. She's older and she thinks that life is over for her. She's, what, 27? And she feels like she missed the train. I cannot even remember how many times I heard that in the mouth of a woman. The feeling of limitation and of being overdue, Jane Austen was writing about this very modern idea 300 years ago.' Jane Austen Wrecked My Life was snapped up by Sony Pictures Classics at Toronto International Film Festival last year, and has opened in the United States to rave reviews. 'When I made the film I thought, Okay, maybe the audience for our film will be women,' Piani says. 'But not at all. There are young men and older men. Everyone. I've been hugged by so many people saying the same thing: 'Thank you for making me smile and cry.' That's the most special part of this for me.' Jane Austen Wrecked My Life is in cinemas from Friday, June 13th
Irish Times
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Jane Austen Wrecked My Life review: Sparky dialogue and hearty comedy carry this lovely, mischievous film
Jane Austen Wrecked My Life Director : Laura Piani Cert : 15A Starring : Camille Rutherford, Pablo Pauly, Charlie Anson, Annabelle Lengronne, Liz Crowther, Alan Fairbairn, Frederick Wiseman Running Time : 1 hr 37 mins There is a moment of classic romcom disharmony about a third of the way through this charming bilingual entertainment. Agathe Robinson, an aspiring writer who works in Paris's famous Shakespeare and Company bookshop, has arrived in a leafy corner of England for a Jane Austen retreat. Oliver, a descendant of the Regency writer, reveals, minutes after picking Agathe up, that he has little time for his ancestor. Agathe scowls at this disrespect. The two settle into mutual hatred. We know roughly how this will play out. Stories have been playing out that way since Rosalind Russell frowned towards Cary Grant. The same dynamics were at work when Meg Ryan later snapped at Billy Crystal. Laura Piani, making her feature debut, is, of course, also gesturing back to the 19th century. All those classic romcom plots, antipathy melting into affection, are deeply in debt to Austen herself. It is to Piani's great credit that her film rises above comparisons not just with Austen's work and the trad romcom but also with attempts – we're thinking of you, Bridget Jones – to weave those last two things together. No postmodern doublethink is required to sustain interest in the prickly love triangle at the core of Jane Austen Wrecked My Life. Sparky dialogue and hearty comedy keep the story aloft throughout. The actors juggle French and English with great dexterity. [ Laura Piani: 'I didn't want to do a film about a woman who is saved by a man. I believe in love, but not that' Opens in new window ] Events begin with Agathe, played by a convincingly fretful Camille Rutherford, struggling with life, love and work in the French capital. An injection of energy comes her way when Félix (Pablo Pauly), colleague and occasional squeeze, sends her story to the Jane Austen retreat, only for the organisers to break into raves. Agathe travels. Oliver (Charlie Anson) intervenes. Soon she finds herself torn between old chum and new annoyance. READ MORE Which year did Marty not visit? 1885 1955 2015 2055 What was Clint Eastwood's first film as director? The Outlaw Josey Wales Play Misty for Me Firefox Bird Who is not a sibling? Macaulay Kieran Rory Benji The actor playing the title character of which film was actually born in the US? Klute (1971) The Mask (1994) Dudley Do-Right (1999) Green Lantern (2011) What is the last Pixar film to win the best animated feature Oscar? Soul Onward Coco Inside Out Which is the odd period out? Ms Weld Dan Aykroyd in Dragnet Ms Squibb Christina Ricci in The Addams Family Who was not portrayed by Steph? Ally Lee Patrizia Breathless Which is the odd one out? Harrison Ford's other profession 2024 Palme d'Or winner Todd Haynes's notorious early short Halloween and Escape from New York Who is about to succeed, among many, many others, James Whale, Terence Fisher and Kenneth Branagh? Guillermo del Toro Ari Aster David Lowery Robert Eggers Whose daughter fought the Triffids? Alison Steadman Thora Hird Patricia Routledge Margaret Rutherford The film does occasionally struggle with getting England right. We are always aware that this is a French film-maker looking through the window at the crumpets on their doilies. But there is a mischievous intelligence at work that complements the embrace of sometimes broad misunderstandings. The film has a coolness that you find only in French comedy. It's worth it alone to hear Agathe identify, in the most Gallic of vowels, one character with a particular work. He suggests, apparently, Mr Bertram in 'Mahnsfeeld Perk'. No offence intended. Lovely film. In cinemas from Friday, June 13th
Scottish Sun
03-05-2025
- Scottish Sun
I tried the extreme-daytripping trend with a 12-hour trip to Paris – here's what they don't tell you on TikTok
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) EXTREME daytripping – where you go to another country, explore for a day and return home before bedtime – has exploded on social media. But to make the most of those precious few hours in a foreign city, pre-booking your experiences with an expert is a savvy decision. 2 A look across the Seine to Notre Dame Credit: Getty 2 The Shakespeare And Company bookshop counted Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce and Gertrude Stein among its visitors Credit: Alamy And many offer time-saving extras like skipping queues or going into attractions after dark. I've never been to Paris, so this seemed the ideal first extreme trip for me – the chance to take in the city's amazing sites and fabulous food in just a day. My morning started with a 5am alarm, and by 6.30am I was in my seat on one of the first Eurostar services out of London. Just two and a half hours later, I was pulling into Gare du Nord in Paris. A must-see was the Impressionist art at the Musee d'Orsay. But there was no queueing for tickets – my guide met me at the entrance and we were straight in. The museum is regularly voted one of the best in the world and inside are over 15,000 pieces of art, from paintings to sculptures. The most notable artists are Monet, Degas and Renoir. Up in the attic I saw works by Vincent Van Gogh. It was the busiest room of the museum, but it was worth manoeuvring through the crowds to get a glimpse of the magnificent Starry Night Over the Rhône. The museum is beautiful, with a huge gold clock and a vaulted ceiling – features from its former life as a train station. The clock has been ticking there since 1900. Martin Lewis gives travel advice about checking your passport I wrapped up at the Orsay at 1pm – and I was already halfway through the day. With an afternoon food tour booked, I was on a mission to see Notre Dame first, and set off along the banks of the Seine. Coffee carts on the Left Bank were handy for a caffeine boost after the early start, and I picked up a little souvenir at the stalls along the way. I wandered from winding streets to broad avenues lined with trees in full blossom. I stopped outside the famous bookshop, Shakespeare And Company, which opened in 1951 and counted Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce and Gertrude Stein among its visitors. Across the road was Notre Dame which, after the devastating fire in 2019, has just begun to allow visitors. However, guided tours are not available until June. Half an hour after marvelling at the cathedral, I was tucking into a buttery, layered croissant on the City Experience's Ultimate Food Tour. Across the Marais neighbourhood, I was taken on a gastronomic journey sampling award-winning chocolate, macarons, classic French cheeses and onion soup, all while learning interesting tidbits along the way. In the Jewish Quarter I stopped for a pastrami sandwich, then a French-Syrian bakery for sweet treats and to top it off, I sampled two French wines, including delicious Chablis. I had an hour left before my 8pm Eurostar, which had me back in London by 10pm. As a homebody, extreme daytripping is a trend I can definitely get on board with.
