Historian Julian Jackson on the de Gaulle biopic's success and his book on France 1940

Mixed · 2Julian Jackson, a British historian and Emeritus Professor of Modern French History at Queen Mary University of London, wrote the biography of Charles de Gaulle on which France's two-part biopic "De Gaulle" is based. 1 2 Right · 1Arab News, citing an AFP interview, reports that Jackson, 72, advised on the adaptation and script, and that the films, which premiered in May, have sold nearly six million cinema tickets. 2 Right · 1The biography, "A Certain Idea of France", became popular with French readers after its 2019 translation. 2

Mixed · 2Jackson said he had assumed the French knew de Gaulle's story well, but that after the film he realised how little they knew of it; he said people mostly remember the de Gaulle of the 1960s. 2 1 Right · 1The films cover de Gaulle's 1940 refusal of the armistice with Nazi Germany, his flight to London and his leadership of Free France, which involved dealings with Churchill and Roosevelt. 2 Right · 1Jackson attributed the film's success partly to disenchantment with politics, saying people found it reassuring to latch onto someone who made politics feel magical again. He noted that de Gaulle was "absolutely hated" when he left power in 1969. 2

Right · 1Jackson is wary of historical parallels with the present. He sees the 1930s as the most obvious one but is not sure fascism is the issue today. He called Marine Le Pen's party "a racist party" and "a party of exclusion", but said he does not think she is a threat to democracy. 2 Centre · 1On France 24's Spotlight, presenter François Picard interviewed Jackson, whose book on the fall of France is now out in French as "La Chute: France 1940", covering the occupation of Paris and the country's collapse in summer 1940. 1