05/12/2025

LYFE FRIDAY | DEC 5, 2025

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Asterix in Germany A theme park based on the beloved French comic strip series Asterix is to open in Germany, a first o Theme park based on French comic strip

time the adventures of Gaul are to be the focus of an attraction outside France, its operator said recently. An Asterix theme park is expected to stand in Leipzig by 2030–2031 where an existing theme park called Belantis now stands, according to Compagnie des Alpes. The new attraction will be a twin of the vast Parc Asterix that opened in 1989 outside Paris, one of France’s premier tourist attractions. The change at the park in Germany will take place gradually, with the first area dedicated to Idefix – the dog of Asterix’s burly sidekick Obelix – opening as early as March 2026. In terms of the numbers of Asterix comic books – originally written and illustrated by the duo of Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo – Germany is the second largest market. Compagnie des Alpes said that “this park has the potential to eventually welcome nearly 900,000 visitors per year”. The second most visited amusement park in France after Disneyland Paris, Parc Asterix welcomed 2.9 million visitors during the 2024-2025 season. It is currently ranked eighth most visited in Europe. With the book franchise showing no sign of slowing after the deaths of Goscinny in 1977 and Uderzo in 2020, the latest Asterix cartoon adventure released in October was published in 19 languages and across 25 countries. Asterix in Lusitania was the 41st instalment in the legendary series, created by author Fabcaro and illustrator Didier Conrad, taking Asterix to the far reaches of the Roman Empire in an exciting adventure. – AFP

Compagnie des Alpes says that German theme park Belantis, acquired in April, will be transformed into an Asterix park by 2030–2031.

JR’s work will be on display from June 6 to 28, 2026.

Paris’s oldest bridge to be transformed into art

FRENCH artist JR, who made his way from tagging graffiti on the street to being one of the most recognisable figures on the country’s art scene, has revealed his plans to turn the oldest bridge in Paris into an “immersive cave”. Once hailed as the “French Banksy” after the secretive British street artist, JR has become famous for outsize projects, having already transformed the Palais Garnier Paris opera to look like a cave and mounting a painting that made the famous Louvre pyramid seem to disappear. Now he intends to create a 120m “cave” along the Pont Neuf, the oldest bridge over the Seine in Paris, that anybody will be free to walk through. “You will be completely lost in terms of your sense of direction and reference points in relation to the outside world,”JR, whose real name is Jean Rene, shared during a recent interview at his studio in Paris. “It’s going to be a monumental

project, but this is a city that knows how to welcome monumental projects,” he said, hailing how Paris handled last year’s Olympics. He said the project, which will open next June after two years of work, was an homage to an earlier work by artists Jeanne-Claude and Christo. The France-based couple, in 1985, wrapped the same bridge in woven fabric. “The task is made easier for me because I’m following in their footsteps,” he said. JR revealed that he expects the task to not only be easier in terms of construction, but also in terms of administration. While Christo and Jeanne-Claude battled for 10 years to make their project a reality in the face of political reluctance, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo welcomed JR’s plan. Cars and buses will be banned from the bridge during the installation’s run between June 6 and 28. – AFP

Actors dressed as characters from the Asterix and Obelix comic books, posing at the Asterix theme park. – ALL PICS FROM AFP

French photographer and street artist JR is following in the footsteps of artists Jeanne-Claude and Christo.

People having the time of their life on the roller coaster, one of the attractions at Parc Asterix amusement park.