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12 March 2020. Record rainfall and flooding in Northern France. Canche River overflows, Hauts de France, Pas de Calais. Floodwaters continue to rise. Following months of record rainfalls, the Canche River near Montreuil Sur Mer burst its banks flooding local homes in Beaumarie St Martin. The river last flooded in 2013, however residents claim they have never seen it as bad as this. Photo © Charlie varley/varleypix.com Please note – All rights reserved. Rights managed images. No model/property releases are supplied unless stipulated. For any potential editorial or commercial use please contact varleypix.com. Cutting/copying/pasting/printing images for media/web sites/blog use without permission constitutes copyright theft. ONLINE Media/bloggers please note - your use of images DOES NOT constitute 'personal' sales, this is considered editorial use - editorial rates apply. You have been warned. All images ©varleypix.com 1990-2020.

14 March 2020. Saint Denoeux, Pas de Calais, France. Rallye du Touquet. The 60th Rally du Touquet winds its way through the French countryside. The Rally is one of the few sporting events taking place in the midst of the almost total cancellation of all sporting events due to the outbreak of COVID-19 coronavirus. Photo©; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com Please note – All rights reserved. Rights managed images. No model/property releases are supplied unless stipulated. For any potential editorial or commercial use please contact varleypix.com. Cutting/copying/pasting/printing images for media/web sites/blog use without permission constitutes copyright theft. ONLINE Media/bloggers please note - your use of images DOES NOT constitute 'personal' sales, this is considered editorial use - editorial rates apply. You have been warned. All images ©varleypix.com 1990-2020.

02 April 2020. Hesdin, Pas de Calais, France. Coronavirus - COVID-19 in Northern France. Easing restrictions on local markets. For the first time since government restrictions came into force, the main market in Hesdin has been permitted to re-open. The historical town has hosted a usually vibrant and bustling market since the middle ages. With stall holders limited and many suffering huge financial losses, those selling food today were happy to be back to work despite the ongoing risks posed by coronavirus. Shoppers, many wearing masks were mostly maintaining their social distancing with people happy to be out and able to meet and talk with other people. A lot of shoppers were elderly people who have been trapped in their homes for weeks. One shopper complained of 'la misère,' - the misery of this virus and being stuck in her home. Anyone leaving their home must carry with them an 'attestation,' in a effect a self administered permit to allow them out of the house. If stopped by the police, one must produce a valid permit along with identification papers. Failure to do so is punishable with heavy fines. Movement in France has been heavily restricted by the government and today's market re-opening was a brief return to normalcy for many able to escape the confines of their homes. Photo©; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com All Rights Managed.

©Charlie Varley/varleypix.com All rights managed. Phone +33 787120501. 09 Apr 2020. Montreuil Sur Mer (MSM), France. Olivier and Belinda Tirel, (both 45 yrs) owners of La Cave de Montreuil and Le Touquet, 1hr south of Calais with emergency vehicle, the 'Vinbulance.' Belinda, an Australian met Olivier, a Frenchman in London in 1996 when they worked at Café Rouge in Kew Gardens. Married 24 years with 4 children they own 2 wine shops, one in Le Touquet (2007), one in MSM (2015). The Tirel’s knew they were in trouble when the French Government dramatically ordered their businesses shuttered March 17th as part of lockdown laws.. However realising the country’s need for wine to help ease the pain, the govt relented declaring businesses supplying alcohol and tobacco ‘première nécessité’ – literally translated as ‘first necessity.’ Their wine bar closed, restaurant sales decimated, Belinda knew they must act fast. Sitting home with a glass of wine one evening Belinda experienced ‘one of those light bulb moments.’ ‘Why not convert our delivery van into a ‘vinbulance?’ After all the word for wine in French, is 'vin,' pronounced ‘van’ in English and the word for ambulance is the same. Not wishing to offend anyone working on the front lines of the war against Coronavirus, the couple contacted medical professional customers and friends. ‘Our friends’ response was overwhelming. Why not cheer people up, bring some smiles and lift people's spirits in these difficult times. And that is the point of it,' explained Olivier. 'People give us thumbs up, honk horns and wave when they see the 'vinbulance.' Belinda is stopped countless times with people asking to take photos,’ says Olivier. 'The coronavirus crisis crippled our business. We lost our restaurant trade, people don't have parties or celebrate and we don't get any government aid. We have 4 kids and a Brazilian exchange student staying with us. She is trapped and can not fly home. We had to save our business and provide for our family.’ Olivier and Belinda learned of the mandate closing all bars and restaurants when a customer came to the shop and asked for their wi-fi code to listen to Macron's speech. 'Only then did we learn we must close our doors at midnight. It was the same for everyone. It was brutal,' explained Olivier. Looking on the bright side Oliver said, 'certainly these are difficult times for every business, who knows how many will survive? Yes, it's important to maintain social distancing and we worry we could catch the virus and take it home to our kids, but business needs to go on. You drink to celebrate and you drink to forget, luckily we will always have business.' And with that, Belinda loaded the ‘vinbulance’ and headed out to bring a little cheer to countless customers during these uncertain times. *MSM was British Army HQ during WW1, Field Marshal Haig's stature stands in the square honouring British sacrifice. ©; varleypix.com.

26 June 2020. Migrant crisis, Calais, France. Images from 'Zone des Dunes' refugee camp, a relatively new refugee camp which sprang up just outside the notorious 'Jungle' camp which was dismantled by authorities in October/November 2016. Images of poignant graffiti outside the camp - 'See you in UK.' Images of the treacherous English Channel (La Manche) shipping lanes migrants must cross to reach English shores as they risk their lives crossing one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world, often using flimsy craft such as surf boards, inflatable kayaks and even paddling pools to make the dangerous journey. Images of security fencing around Calais and of Decathlon outdoor and sports store where it is alleged ruthless Albanian gangsters who control the migrant camps purchase the tents and various boats, boards and other equipment they then sell to migrants at vastly inflated prices. Collect photo of migrants rescued by French coastguard. Images of Daily Mirror senior reporter Andy Lines on one of the many beaches desperate migrants are known to depart from as they seek a better life for themselves and their families in the UK. All photos © Charlie Varley/varleypix.com(with exception of collect image from French coastguard) All rights managed.

30June 2020. Searching for migrants on the coast of NW France. Smugglers' Paradise. Deserted shacks and a deserted caravan are hidden in the sand dunes of a remote beach south of Calais where local police claim migrants often attempt the treacherous crossing to Great Britain. Items found in a shack and caravan including passport photos, empty water bottles, mattresses and cardboard used as bedding clearly indicate the seemingly derelict premises have recently been used. The location is reasonably remote and backs onto farmland. A gravel access road makes this a prime location for ruthless criminal gangs to drop migrants paying as much as €5,000 for a ticket on an inflatable dinghy with a small outboard motor and less for surfboards and inflatable kayaks. Local police claim it is from here and other beaches in the region that migrants often set out to make desperate and dangerous attempts to cross one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. Migrants are crossing the English Channel (La Manche) by boat, kayak, surf board and even inflatable paddling pools as numbers seeking asylum in the UK continue to rise. Photo©; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com All Rights Managed.

08 November 2020. Ovillers Cemetery, Thiepval memorial, Newfoundland Memorial, The Somme, France. Remembrance Sunday. Ovillers Cemetery. Just across the valley from Lochnagar Crater lie the remains of 3,440 Commonwealth servicemen of the First World War buried or commemorated in the cemetery. 2,480 of the burials are unidentified. The cemetery also contains the graves of 120 fallen French servicemen. Many of the casualties occured the first day of the Battle off the Somme, July 1st 1916 when British troops attempted to take the towns of ovillers and la Boisselle after detonating an enormous mine at Lochnagar. Heavily fortified German positions annihilated the British advance leaving in excess of 6,000 casualties on the first day of the battle of the Somme. In total there were over 1 million casualties during the battle with over 60,000 casualties on July 1st 1916. Thiepval Memorial, The Somme, France. Remembrance Sunday. The Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme is a war memorial to 72,337 missing British and South African servicemen who perished in the Battles of the Somme of the First World War between 1915 and 1918, with no known grave. The visitors' centre opened in 2004. The memorial was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and has been described as "the greatest executed British work of monumental architecture of the twentieth century". On the Portland stone piers are engraved the names of over 72,000 men who were lost in the Somme battles between July 1915 and March 1918. Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial, The Somme, Picardy, France. Remembrance Sunday. The Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial is dedicated to the commemoration of Dominion of Newfoundland forces members who were killed during World War I. The 74-acre (300,000 m2) preserved battlefield park encompasses the grounds over which the Newfoundland Regiment made their unsuccessful attack on 1 July 1916 during the first day of the Battle of the Somme. The Battle of the Somme was the regiment's first major engagement, and during an assault that lasted approximately 30 minutes the regiment was all but wiped out. Purchased in 1921 by the people of Newfoundland, the memorial site is the largest battalion memorial on the Western Front, and the largest area of the Somme battlefield that has been preserved. Along with preserved trench lines, there are a number of memorials and cemeteries contained within the site. Opened by British Field Marshal Earl Haig in 1925, the memorial site is one of only two National Historic Sites of Canada located outside of Canada. The site also contains a number of memorials as well as four cemeteries maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission; that of Y Ravine Cemetery, Hawthorn Ridge Cemeteries No. 1 and No. 2 and the mass burial site of Hunter's Cemetery. All Photos©; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com