A general knowledge exam is now part of the Miss France Beauty Contest. Take it yourself here with this link (Translated into English) Lighthearted

[KnopkaPixie]

https://www.journaldesfemmes.fr/people/actus/3206612-miss-france-test-culture-generale/

I hope this link works as the translated version, if not, click on the three horizontal dots and it will give you an English version without fuss.

It's quite a difficult test, especially the maths bit which has a few of those awful, "If Henri has a dog with black spots, Jeanine has a dog with brown spots, Marie has a dog with black and brown spots, how much change would Gustave have from buying a chocolate éclair out of a ten euro note if the dogs were walking backwards on a bank holiday?"

Not exactly, but you know what I'm getting at. Are you as clever as Adeline Vetter, Miss Alsace?

The test marks from the Culture Générale count towards the final result so if your regional costume round let you down because you could barely walk straight dressed as a quiche Lorraine or you let slip something political in the interview with the presenter, all is not lost.

That's a variation on the classic bat and ball question - where people "think fast" and give an answer instead of slowing down.

"A bat and ball coat £1.10 The bat costs £1 more than the ball. What does the ball cost? "

Just updated pour le croissant et le baguette.

40/58 in French.
@KnopkaPixie my cousin was Miss Corsica in the mid nineties. She hated Miss France. The make-up they did on her was shocking, she looked like a clown. The regional outfit they put her in was ridiculous. They all got flown to Guadaloupe for a week shortly before the actual contest for montage scenes, which sounds amazing, but they had no freedom. They weren't allowed to sunbathe or swim in case they got a tan (you had to have your natural skin colour back in the day). Diet food for fear of anyone putting on weight. She cried the whole time she was there. And they all knew way in advance who the finalists and winner was going to be.
She did love the Miss Corsica bit though, that was a lot of fun.

@RelativePitch I think that you've just confirmed a few of my suspicions about these shenanigans. I do enjoy watching it and as you said, I think the regional events are pretty innocent.

I have wondered over the years if the results were rigged or decided well in advance, just going off the staginess of some of the reactions and the look of some girls as if they were just going through the motions, as it were.

Presumably when your cousin was in the competition, Geneviève de Fontany was still in charge and I cannot believe that this so called 'French National Treasure' was anything but extremely difficult to work with to say the very, very, very least.

https://youtube.com/shorts/_N7SVtu7mqw?si=Fyaj0I5qvifGAr1b

Well folks, here's the winner! Miss Martinique. She's 34 which is a bit controversial because of age limits bla bla, "la wokeisme" but I may as well let you know the result.

Miss Corse came third. I'm happy with that because she's the local girl and the best we've done in ages.

Miss Nord de Calais came second.