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French Language Radio & TV in the UK

malcolm

malcolm

& Clementine the Cat
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4,527
Location
Bedford UK
Must be some Francophiles on here :D

I'm learning to speak French, and I'd like to find a cost effective way of listening to French speaking radio while I'm in the garage, and maybe even a little French TV for the evenings.

On the TV side of things I can pay for TV5MONDE on Sky TV, though as they claim to be there to promote French language I can't see why I can't watch them for free. Probably that's Sky TV's fault, so for that reason I'm happy to stop paying sky and point the dish elsewhere even if others in the house might complain. Is TV5 any good? Worth a quid a month? Or is it worth installing a second dish pointing 33 degrees for all the other game show channels too? Internet TV is no good - I watch telly when I want to avoid the internet.

Radio would be better. I spend a lot of time in the garage and might as well be learning French while I'm there. Any French radio would be better than The Archers, and not understanding the news would save much depression. For radio us Brits like to brainwash people with the excellent BBC World Service, but the Frenchies don't seem to return the favour very well. Maybe they do and I don't have the correct listening equipment. Anyone north of London have any clues - maybe I need a digital radio or a longwave radio that actually works properly?

Or I suppose given the garage is internet enabled I could stick a computer in there and try for one of the on-line radio channels.

Is there anyone here that listens to French speaking radio in the UK and can tell me how they do it?
 
I'll try 162 on longwave. Scanned around yesterday and there were a couple of French language channels, but very noisy. Might just be my radio - not sure if there's anything on digital.

I have some other good sites in my bookmarks:

RFI -lange francaise apprendre has news bulletins in French with the script to read

Your TV5 site is in there - they have a good dictionary too - links at the bottom of this page are handy: http://www.tv5.org/TV5Site/lf/langue_francaise.php

Also there's our very own BBC learn French page
 
Guess what surprise appeared in my letterbox today. A big letter addressed to the Wing Commander, Paradiseland containing cinq CDs of people speaking French with English translations. Just a small amount of technology needed (my CD player was sold on eBay years ago) before I can learn French while fixing French things in the garage. Thanks Ian. :hug:

My longwave reception turns out to be limited by the radio which does AM more than your actual longwave. It doesn't go down as far as 162. Further technology required there too.

Amazing isn't it that we need so much technology to keep up with the French. :D
 
162 is on the old long wave if I remember rightly!

I can get it in my works van (though it is a Renault, so I guess I should)

Perhaps pick up an old Roberts off Ebay?
 
..Move over Wing Commander..

..Its now Uncle Malcolm and many congratulations to you all...BRILLANT
 
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Surely a nice valve radio would be the appropriate thing in the garage!:)
 
Thanks Pepper - I have that running now. Can't understand very much of it just now but it's perfect. Lots of talking on there and it's quite clear. No '80s music either.

Tomorrow I shall set up the big old fashioned computer in the garage (that has a CD player too).
 
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