Christmas background: Francophone Anglophiles dream of a trip to England

Like most older people, the COVID-19 pandemic kept Manon at home and she felt quite lonely.

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Manon is a French-speaking Quebecer who proudly flies the Union Jack at her home. She knows that it is not common among her friends, but she is fiercely protective of her flag.

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“My mother was Scottish,” Manon said. “It’s about telling people about my roots and where I come from.”

From a young age, Manon was obsessed with the royal family and especially Queen Elizabeth II. Manon remembers the dates of most of the important events in the history of the royal family and even shares a birthday with Prince Charles.

An illness in his youth prevented him from entering the workforce and he is now past retirement age. He has spent his life pursuing his interests – he has loads of books on British history and whenever a friend visits England he is always sure to bring something for his Anglophile friend. A recent gift was a Beefeater gin mascot figurine.

She is also an avid walker, which she credits with keeping her in good shape well into her 80s. He has no health problems at the moment, he said, although his legs may feel heavy after a long day.

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Like most older people, the COVID-19 pandemic kept Manon at home and she felt quite lonely.

“I never go out at night and I only go for a walk during the day,” he said. “The only exception I made was seeing Spencer (Diana’s movie) in theaters. I couldn’t miss that. “

In addition to her lifelong passion, Manon said there wasn’t much more to do than overcome COVID largely alone. She has not closed the door in a day visiting England, and hopes that in the new year an opportunity will present itself.

“What a dream that would be,” he said. “You never know what can happen.”

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