Vigils, black cabs bearing tricolour lights and appeals to “buy French” – Londoners and expatriates living in what is sometimes referred to as “France’s sixth largest city” have been continuing to show solidarity with Paris in a variety of ways following Friday’s terror attacks.
As France observed a third day of national mourning on Monday, including a minute’s silence at noon, they were joined by many people in Britain, including crowds who again gathered in Trafalgar Square.
A Trafalgar Square, minute de silence dans l'émotion et le recueillement #ParisAttacks pic.twitter.com/EceKXLDQjk
— Florence Biedermann (@Bidewen) November 16, 2015
Similar scenes took place at King’s Cross railway station and St Pancras, the hub for Eurostar trains bound for Paris. Elsewhere in the UK, Muslims at Birmingham’s central mosque and Francophiles involved with the UK’s French language centres paid tribute.
Other gatherings have been taking place in more intimate settings. Pascal Grierson, the CEO of French Radio London – a dedicated French language broadcaster which has become a focal point for many discussions in recent days that have drawn people from around the world – said that he and friends had shared thoughts around the dinner table on Sunday night.
“The French, in a very Latin way, have to share and express. They tend to be quite vocal about what they have been through, so it’s no surprise to see that people are getting together like this and talking about things,” he said.
“In some ways, the French outside of France are quite a different bunch. They can be more pragmatic, well travelled and they’re definitely very eager to monitor media channels,” he said.
The cafes and bars of South Kensington have been host to much of the talk among London-based French people, although Grierson adds that the community is much more spread out in comparison with others and more likely to mix as friends with locals and other immigrants.
Ripples from the attacks have been felt in other ways. Extra security has been brought in to guard the French school in South Kensington amid fears that it could be under threat.
Floral and written tributes to those who lost their lives have been piling up outside the French embassy in Knightsbridge, where dignitaries and others have been visiting to sign a book of condolence.
“It’s the incarnation of the sovereignty of France and that’s the reason why people are coming here,” said France’s ambassador to the UK, Sylvie Bermann, who told the BBC that the French community in London had been “greatly moved” by the outpouring of solidarity and friendship.
Other gestures have included drivers of London’s black taxi cabs who have replaced paid advertisements on their roofs with tricolour lights.
London cabs have replaced paid ads on their roofs with a tricolour. Lovely. Seen about five this morning. #Paris pic.twitter.com/a3MOXbnAog
— Sali Hughes (@salihughes) November 16, 2015
Londoners have also been urged to show solidarity through their pockets. Conservative MP Bob Neill, secretary of the all-party parliamentary group on France, called on Britons to buy French goods, describing Paris as the city with which London has more links than any other.
He added: “It shows economic solidarity and demonstrates to the perpetrators of those atrocities that we are not going to change our shared way of life.”
Boris Johnson, the mayor of London, said meanwhile that he would be joining those at Tuesday’s international football friendly between England and France at Wembley stadium, where England fans are being urged to join in the singing of La Marseillaise.
“I think it’s very important to go to show solidarity with our friends in Paris, with the people of France, and above all to show that business goes on,” he told BBC news.
The traditional order of the national anthems will be reversed so La Marseillaise will be heard last and England fans are being encouraged to join in with singing it, with the words shown on the stadium screens.
A pre-match display made up of seat posters will form the tricolour – Wembley’s arch has also been illuminated in red, white and blue. Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris said: “We’re very touched by all the messages of support from all over the world, in particular here in London and England.
“The most important thing about the match is to be together, to be playing together, singing the Marseillaise together as one group. We will share that moment together. If lots of the English supporters join in, that will make the moment even stronger, and that will be amazing. It will make it even more emotional.”
