DO you think you could pass for a Norman or a Roman from around 50BC and want to be part of a new €50 million movie starring Gérard Depardieu and Catherine Deneuve?

THERE were hugs, slaps on the back and even a few tears - it's been a long time since Toulon enjoyed a day like this but thanks to the largesse of owner Mourad Boudjellal, they may have a few more in the future.

Wily French cartoon characters Asterix and Obelix have lost their first battle — not against their traditional foes Julius Caesar and the Roman Empire, but against the European Trademark office and mobile-phone company Orange.

With his blue hat and spotty scarf, he may not exactly encapsulate the French sense of style.