Feuilleton d'été

For the last twenty years or so, one of the staples of French summer television has been the “feuilleton d’été” (Summer saga), a mini-series, usually programmed once a week throughout the summer. Summer sagas are good old-fashioned melodramas with heroes, villains and family secrets. Their settings are places viewers have visited or dreamed of visiting – luxurious places with gorgeous weather (unless a storm is necessary for the plot) providing the escapism needed during this lazy time of year.
I feel somewhat sorry for those who slaved over scripts and filming this winter as our most exciting summer sagas this year have been dealt with daily in the news.
The first – “Chaos in Blue” -- began in early June.



Dramatis personae:
Raymond Domenech: A former professional football player for Lyon, Strasbourg, Paris and Bordeaux. Named manager of the French national team in 2004. What secret led to his being kept on even after the disastrous defeat of France in the Euro 2008? Why do the heroes of 1998 roll their eyes each time his name is mentioned?

Nicolas Anelka: “the bad boy of French football”. Talented, yes, but what score did he get on the “Are you a team player?” quiz?
What did he really say in the locker room at half time on June 17th? Who told the press and why? Why did his picture disappear from a hamburger chain’s advertisement on June 20th?

Picture taken June 24th. Where's Anelka?


Thierry Henry: He scored 3 goals with the mythical 1998 French National team. But will he be more remembered for the goal he scored with his hand against Ireland in November 2009? Or for the fact that President Sarkozy sent a car with a motorcycle escort on June 24th when he and the team returned glumly from South Africa? Henry was sped to a secret meeting at the Palais Elysées while government organizations waited for the President at the Quai d’Orsay to prepare the G20 meeting and 2 million French people marched the streets to protest the planned increase in retirement age from 60 to 62.

Rama Yad: Exotically beautiful Muslim woman, born in Senegal, married to the son of a Yiddish singer, formerly Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Human Rights and, since June 23rd 2009, Secretary of State for (I’m not making this up) Sports. But why did Rama consider it necessary to complain about the expense of the French team’s hotel in South Africa before they had even lost a match? And why was an even more expensive hotel room reserved for her when she went to see them?

Roseline Bachelot: enthusiastic Minister of Health (and Sport). Boss and rival of Rama Yad. Which version of her secret meeting with the players before the match with South Africa is the true one? Did she bring them to tears with her lecture on their responsibilities to the youth of France or did she find a team with “immature leaders ordering around frightened kids”?

Jean Pierre Escalettes: The 75 year old President of the French Football Federation. Is he the cause or the innocent victim of the South African disaster? Did he resign or was he asked to step down?

Such an exciting time we’ve had. Can’t wait for the episodes later this summer and fall.
Will Laurent Blanc, the new manager be able to create a winning team by August?
Will there be a Football Summit in October?
Will FIFA exclude France from international competition for political interference?
Will the French Football Federation resign collectively in December?

Stay tuned.