Welcome

Welcome to the Bristol French Circle!

The Bristol French Circle is for all those who enjoy speaking and listening to French.

Founded in 1905, the Circle is affiliated to the Alliance Française which provides us with financial support.

We meet at BAWA on alternate Thursdays from October to May each year. Our programme is very varied and we have French speakers on a wide range of subjects (including art, music, geography, culture and society), informal conversation evenings, a literary discussion (Le vieux qui déjeunait seul this year) and a ‘café-concert’ – an evening of poetry and music presented by our members.

Outside the programme, we enjoy dinners in local restaurants in Bristol and trips to see French films.

The main event of each evening starts at 8pm, with the announcement of information about the weeks to come at about 7.55pm, and we encourage members and visitors to come along from 7.30pm to have a chat before the start of the talk or other activity. On the dates when there is a speaker, shown in the programme by an asterisk *, Charlotte will do a ‘petit cours’, starting at 7pm, looking at vocabulary, idioms and the odd grammar point – it is all very light-hearted and completely optional.

Do have a look at the ‘Why join?’ tab to see members’ comments about the Circle – and come and join us if you enjoy this lovely language! Our FAQ (Frequently asked questions) may help you too.

Please don’t worry if your school French lessons seem a long time ago or you feel very rusty – there is absolutely no minimum level of language proficiency required and you are assured of a warm welcome. If you have any questions or hesitations, do get in touch with Charlotte, the President of the Circle by email (charlottejanetaylor10@gmail.com) or by phone (07976 922636) – she will be delighted to have a chat with you. In the meantime, keep up to date by checking this website and do let Charlotte know if you would like to be on the French Circle mailing list. You can subscribe to it by clicking here: http://eepurl.com/idRkCn which will take you to a form to fill in. If you do this, please also email Charlotte so she can welcome you. We look forward to hearing from you!

Bristol French Circle News

Dear friends

I hope your summer is going nicely!

We’re planning a couple of events over the summer, the first to celebrate the Fête Nationale on 14th July. We’re going to meet at 12.30 for lunch at Le French Corner, 36 Hill Road, Clevedon, BS21 7PJ, an authentic French restaurant. There is le menu classique and the lunch menu to choose from. Please let me know before 19th June if you would like to come, and please let me have your mobile number and your emergency contact details at the same time. Depending on how many are in the group we will probably do a pre-order so will be in touch with more details with those who have signed up.
If it’s a nice day we will have a bit of a walk – Paula knows all the interesting little twists and turns of Clevedon so we will be able to discover some of the less known corners of this lovely seaside town.
The X6 bus goes to Clevedon from Bristol and the best one to take will be leaving the bus station at 11.15; get out after the bandstand in Clevedon. You may of course choose to drive there – if you have space in you car to take someone else, please let me know. Rendez-vous at 12.30 at the restaurant.

2) French films at the Watershed

Pam Beddard of the Watershed has sent me the details of three classic French films which will be coming in July:

——– Forwarded Message ——–

French films at Bristol’s Cinema Rediscovered festival

Bonjour Mesdames

A while ago you asked me to let you know about any French language films showing at Watershed. So with this in mind, I’m hoping you’ll like and help spread the word about the following options, all showing as part of the UK’s biggest festival of restored/revived film classics, Cinema Rediscovered, taking place in Bristol from July 22 to 26.

From Claude Chabrol, two of his most admired thrillers, neither of them available to see in a UK cinema for many years because of rights issues.

LA FEMME INFIDELE (the inspiration for this year’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner, MINOTAUR and showing here as the UK premiere of a new restoration)
https://www.watershed.co.uk/whatson/14139/uk-premiere-la-femme-infidle-the-unfaithful-wife

LE BOUCHER (scores 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes & a very decent 7.3/10 on IMDb, also now newly restored) https://www.watershed.co.uk/whatson/14079/uk-premiere-the-butcher-le-boucher

LES SIEGES DE L’ALCAZAR (poking fun at the heated row sparked by cinema in 1950s Paris) https://www.watershed.co.uk/whatson/14062/les-siges-de-lalcazar

All three are available to book now, with generous discounts on tickets for students.

A bientôt
Pam

Pam Beddard | Publicist – Cinema Rediscovered | 07767 621 207 | www.watershed.co.uk/cinema-rediscovered

Do get in touch with me if you would like more details about anything to do with the French Circle as I will be delighted to chat with you – and do let me know if you don’t think that you are on our mailing list so I can add you.

Charlotte

charlottejanetaylor10@gmail.com

Phrase of the moment

Il ne faut pas juger les gens sur la mine – Don’t judge a book by its cover

Do let me know your favourite French words and expressions so that I can put them here!

Committee 2025–2026

Officers

President – Charlotte Taylor

Acting Treasurer – Ian Deegan

Membership Secretary – Liz Swift, with the help of Barbara Redshaw and Heather Clarke

Programme Secretary – Ray Harding

Hospitality Secretary – Heather Clarke

Secretary – Sheila Cheatle

Members

Steve Alexander

Anissa Aumeerally

Niki Evans

Vicki Hasaballa

Paula MacLachlan

Dominic O’Dwyer

Honorary President

Rod Shepherd

Why join?

  • Parce que toutes les séances se déroulent en français
  • As a newcomer and non-fluent speaker I am grateful for the opportunity to ‘fit in’ at my own pace
  • I always enjoy the conversation evenings – of particular benefit when fluent French speakers join those (like me) who are not so fortunate!
  • Parce que les conférences sont sur des thèmes variés et intéressants
  • I have really enjoyed the mixture of different activities in this my first season with the group, and look forward to the next.
  • Parce que les soirées de conversation sont très sympathiques et tout le monde peut y participer, quel que soit son niveau de français
  • For 90 minutes once a fortnight… ‘je suis en France!!!’
  • Parce que l’on choisit un livre chaque année, on le lit et on en discute en français – très bon pour élargir son vocabulaire
  • Parce que l’ambiance est chaleureuse et sympathique
  • I am really pleased that I have discovered the Circle. I am very encouraged by my success in speaking and understanding French, and by the warm welcome I have received
  • En tant que débutant, je trouve les réunions une bonne occasion de pratiquer la conversation. Les présentations m’aident à découvrir davantage la culture française
  • Pour moi la chose la plus importante c’est que l’on entend du français authentique parlé par quelqu’un qui a le français comme langue maternelle (ou par quelqu’un qui est expert dans la langue française) pendant au moins une heure et c’est toujours sur un sujet intéressant – à mon avis c’est mieux qu’une leçon de français (et beaucoup moins cher bien sûr!)
  • Tout d’abord c’est une opportunité de partager des soirées agréables avec des amateurs de la culture et la langue françaises. Cependant être experimenté avec la langue parlée n’est pas obligatoire!
  • Ayant habité en France pendant quelques années, mais maintenant installé en Angleterre, le Cercle m’a aidé à maintenir mon français et me garder au courant des affaires françaises.
  • Le Cercle me donne l’occasion de parler et d’écouter le français régulièrement dans une ambiance amicale.
  • I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed myself last night. I feel so inspired to go an visit. And I had a tremendous boost to my confidence when I realised I was understanding more than I thought I would. I was even able to laugh in the right places! I felt welcome and included from the very beginning. I won’t pretend that I knew everything that was said but I understood enough. 
  • Les nouvelles, un poème ou les questions contemporaine pour discuter, sont bien pour augmenter nos vocabulaires. Je dois dire que vous livrez les petits cours avec panache – un sens d’humour et gentillesse. Je suis sûr que tout le monde les apprécie.
  • There is little I can say about the French sessions except that they were impressive, enjoyable and informative.   Even at my old age, I have learned so much from them; not just in French vocabulary but also more generally.   I can honestly say that I have greatly appreciated every session.  Thank you very much.  I must add that I particularly liked the poetry session.
  • Bref, tous les petits cours m’ont beaucoup plu. J’ai appris un tas de choses – beaucoup de vocabulaire français, ainsi que l’enseignement intéressant sur les oiseaux. J’ai appris à ma famille ce que veut dire nidicole et nidifuge en anglais et pourquoi les oiseaux ont une plaque incubatrice, par exemple. Alors, grâce à vous, tout le monde apprend les choses chez moi! Les conversations dans les petits groupes étaient très agréables et j’étais très heureuse le soir ou nous avions étudié un poème. En somme, tout m’a donné plaisir et je vous remercie beaucoup de tous vos efforts pour nous aider à améliorer notre connaissance de la langue française.
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