Fort de Seclin, which is part of the stronghold of Lille and dates back to the end of the 19the century, has long been popular with French history buffs. This summer, however, the site was visited by an unusual group: naked people who came on pilgrimage. Because it was here, in the 1930s, when this fortification was a military barracks, that the father of French naturism, Albert Lecocq, met his future wife, Christiane. Both were participating in a naked gymnastics session, which had been authorized by the commander of the place, against all odds. Subsequently, the couple created, in 1950, the first naturist holiday center in the world, the Center Hélio-Marin, in Vendays-Montalivet, near Bordeaux.
More than seventy years later, the movement they created is booming in France, especially among young people. The new followers are in particular ecologists and people who, after the confinements linked to Covid-19, want a return to nature. But these days, naturists don’t just sunbathe on sunny beaches: they play golf or pétanque naked, and strip naked to go bowling or visit museums, heritage sites, restaurants and nightclubs.
“Anything you can do dressed, you could do naked”, summarize Vi
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The Times (London)The oldest of the British dailies (1785) and the best known abroad has belonged since 1981 to Rupert Murdoch. It has long been the reference newspaper and the voice of the establishment. Today, it has lost some of its influence and gossip accuses it of reflecting the conservative ideas of its owner. The Times switched to tabloid format in 2004.
Determined to no longer provide all its content for free, the British daily inaugurated in June 2010 a paid formula which obliges Internet users to subscribe to have access to its articles. Four months after the launch of the operation, the newspaper publishes the first results eagerly awaited by other press players: 105,000 people have become customers of its electronic offers. Among them, about half are regular subscribers to the various versions offered [site Internet, iPad et Kindle]. The others are occasional buyers. These figures, considered satisfactory by the management of the Times should encourage other newspapers to accelerate their march towards paid access.
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