French Ambassador to the UK, Her Excellency, Madame Hélène Duchêne, honoured the Faculty with a visit. After being welcomed by Alex Vincent on behalf of the Humanities Division, and by Faculty Chair Professor Phillip Rothwell, she was delighted to meet members of staff and students, particularly as, before becoming a diplomat, she read French literature at the Ecole Normale Supérieure. In a wide-ranging conversation, current undergraduates talked about their experience both in Oxford and during their year abroad—at French universities, working in publishing houses, being language assistants and spending time living in Paris, in provincial France, as well as in Guadeloupe or Benin; they also evoked the difficulties there can be for those who want to learn a language at school in the United Kingdom or to spend any amount of time overseas. The Ambassador was interested to hear about how the tutorial system works—there is nothing like it in France—and to engage with graduates working on a wide variety of research topics. She was impressed by the students’ fluency and remarked that the French have a particular relationship with their own language: ‘When we hear it spoken, we feel loved’ she said, smiling broadly.