FRENCH AUDIO OF PARIS PROVES HIT IN UK CITY

[AussieMark]

French Audio Tour of Paris Proves Hit in UK City

LONDON (Reuters) - A tourist attraction in the British city of Birmingham, long derided for its soulless architecture, is tempting visitors by offering a guided tour of Paris instead of the Midlands conurbation.
A giant ferris wheel, set up as a temporary Christmas attraction, offers tourists an audio commentary in French of the delights of Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower rather than the concrete landmarks of Spaghetti Junction and the Bullring, which Birmingham has become synonymous with.

The 197-foot wheel was brought from Paris in November and World Tourist Attractions, which runs the ride, is keeping the French commentary because of "technical difficulties," the Times newspaper reported on Wednesday.

"Given the timescale and as the wheel is here until January, we have decided not to replace the audio with a local commentary," a World Tourist Attractions spokesman told the Times.

"In fact, we have had such a good response from people that we will keep the French commentary," the spokesman added.