Residents across Monaco and the wider Riviera were left puzzled on Monday evening after a bright, fast-moving “fireball” lit up the sky.
The phenomenon, visible at around 8.30pm on 20 April, was widely seen from Monaco and surrounding areas, prompting a wave of videos and speculation on social media. Many observers described what appeared to be a glowing orb streaking through the dusk sky, raising questions about whether it could have been a meteor or other atmospheric event.
In reality, the spectacle had a far more terrestrial — and carefully orchestrated — origin.
The “fireball” effect was created during a wingsuit drop involving five flyers who had jumped from a helicopter. Three of the participants were equipped with stage pyrotechnic jets, designed to produce dramatic visual trails during aerial performances.
These pyrotechnic devices emit bright sparks that can extend several metres and remain visible for up to a minute, depending on the configuration. When seen from the ground, particularly at twilight, the effect can resemble a blazing object moving through the sky — hence the widespread confusion.
While unexpected for many onlookers, such displays are not uncommon in professional stunt or promotional events.
Íñigo López de la Osa Franco, the first Monegasque rider ever to qualify for the Show Jumping World Championships, finished eighth in the Grand Prix at the second leg of the Longines Global Champions Tour in Mexico City.
Competing against 38 pairs in the flagship event, the 23-year-old rode Nascar Van’t Siamshof to a second-round score of four penalty points — one fault on the final fence — in a time of 45.01 seconds. Victory went to Italy’s Piergiorgio Bucci aboard Pallieter vd N.Ranch.
The result leaves López de la Osa Franco 15th in the overall Global Champions Tour standings among 47 of the sport’s leading names, and the youngest rider in the top 10.
The Mexico City leg carries particular significance in his preparation for the World Championships. “The ground here — vast and grass-based — has similar characteristics to Aachen,” he said. “Getting an excellent result here means consolidating my path towards the Worlds. I want to arrive there with horses that are physically and mentally ready. Nascar has shown he is capable of facing stages at this level.”
When Jaguar revealed its latest concept car at the end of 2024, it briefly became the most famous car in the world, going viral and causing an outpouring of commentary about the British car company’s new design direction, which includes a complete rebranding for the marque. ‘Out with the old, in with the new’ would be an understatement. The Jaguar Type 00 looks like it just arrived from another planet.
Recently it landed in Monaco as a showpiece to celebrate the opening of BPM Exclusive’s new Jaguar-Land Rover showroom in Fontvieille, where invited guests were able to inspect it at close quarters. To be honest, the internet seems to be having a Marmite kind of dilemma about the styling, which is unlike almost anything else on the road today. The simplicity of design, which marries curves and straight lines to great effect, has a touch of art deco about it and this particular example is displayed in a beautiful matt red colour that makes it impossible to ignore.
At over five metres in length, it is ‘imposing’, reminiscent of the kind of huge car that the world’s wealthiest people drove in the 1920s (think Jay Gatsby). Whilst the sides and bonnet resemble huge slabs, the rear is a graceful curve that could have been inspired by the Bugatti Atlantic Type 57 or, dare I say it, the Jaguar E-type coupe. Like many modern cars, it has horizontal lights that stretch right across the rear of the body, but – apart from some very discrete badges – there is relatively little detail.
The interior is even more sparse, with two pedals on the floor, a steering wheel and… that’s it. Car manufacturers have increasingly been doing away with buttons but here Jaguar seems to have done away with controls altogether. We’ll have to see whether this cockpit gets carried over to the final production model (voice control for everything and head-up display perhaps?), but the overall impression is of high level design and top quality.
Photo credit: Richard McCreery
With 1,000 bhp and a range of almost 700 kms, the Type 00 looks as though it is made for crossing continents. You can imagine how other cars might feel compelled to move out of the way when they see it coming, such is the presence it has in real life. On the screen or the page, it looks like just another concept car, but seen in the light of day, it dominates its environment. “Breathtaking” is a phrase that is frequently overused in the media, but everyone who sees this car for the first time is forced to think about what they are seeing, until their brain can decide whether to like it or hate it.
Jaguar clearly decided that they needed a change of direction if they were going to survive in a world where Chinese and Korean electric vehicles are rapidly taking over. The designers have used the marque’s storied heritage to inspire this luxurious vessel without making it appear ‘retro’. The Type 00 is 100% fresh and is ‘make or break’ for Jaguar who have stopped production of ICE cars to focus entirely on this before it goes on sale next year. The reborn British brand will launch with a four-door version that should be very similar to the model on display here, although I suspect we won’t see many in the bright blues and pinks that Jaguar has used to market it.
The Jaguar Type 00 generated quite a bit of controversy when it was first revealed. However, when you see it in the metal, the whole concept seems far more credible and exciting. The design is coherent, striking and fresh. It really does look like the future. And if this car passed you in the street, you would probably do a double take before walking into a lamppost. Which is probably the reaction that Jaguar was aiming for.
This year marks the 65th anniversary of the historic visit to Ireland by Prince Rainier III and his Irish-American wife Princess Grace, and the Princess Grace Irish Library in Monaco is hosting a special event focussing on Grace Kelly’s Irishness, the State Visit in 1961 and more.
The event will be held on Thursday 30th April at 7pm and explore Princess Grace’s deep attachment to Ireland through the perspective of three gentlemen – retired diplomats Peter K. Murphy and Pierre Joannon, who both knew Princess Grace personally – and a young historian from Dublin, William Harrison Jr., whose recent postgraduate research examined Princess Grace’s 1961 visit to Ireland and its legacy.
The three-way conversation will explore the Irish ascendancy of Princess Grace, from her origins in county Mayo and the continuation of the Irish-American saga in Philadelphia, to coming full circle back to Ireland via Monaco.
Tickets for the event are priced at €10 and include refreshments. They can be purchased by clicking:HERE.
AS Monaco Basket closed out their EuroLeague regular season with a commanding 105-85 win over playoff-bound Hapoel Tel Aviv at Salle Gaston Médecin on Friday 17th April. A match that was expected to prove to be a well-fought, evenly matched battle instead resulted in a one-sided performance, as Monaco took control early and never looked back.
Once again competing with an eight-man roster, Monaco was expected to fight hard in this matchup. Instead, they set the tone immediately. Back-to-back three-pointers from Jaron Blossomgame and Elie Okobo sparked an early lead for Monaco and established control from the opening. The first half alone showed Monaco operating with clear rhythm and confidence. They found unity with one another, with players anticipating and covering for one another’s errors. The chemistry on the court was felt throughout the entire arena, with the energy high and an electric crowd proud to see their team succeed.
With a double-digit lead established early into the game, Monaco continued to extend their lead into halftime, where they were up 17. That momentum carried into the second half as Monaco maintained their high-energy defense and efficient offense. Nearing the end of the fourth quarter, Monaco had built their lead to 20+ points, further reinforcing the fact that this team was functioning as a cohesive unit. After a tough double-header week prior, and with such a limited roster, the rest and recovery in recent days proved valuable to the team.
Individually, the performances were just as strong. Blossomgame scored a EuroLeague career high of 30 points, while Mike James recorded 20 points and 7 assists. Yet beyond the numbers, the most noticeable distinction was the level of teamwork displayed. Monaco’s ball movement, defensive coverage, and overall cohesion consistently outmatched their opponents throughout the night.
The momentum and energy from this win will be crucial for the Roca Team to carry into the upcoming play-in round. With the regular EuroLeague season now complete, Monaco has qualified for the play-in battles to compete for a seat in the final playoffs, facing Panathinaikos on Tuesday.
London and Milan-based gallery Voena returns to Art Monte-Carlo 2026 with a presentation anchored by a rarely seen early work by Nicolas Poussin, placing old master painting in conversation with modern and contemporary art across a booth that takes nature as its connective thread.
The centrepiece is Apollo and Daphne (1625–26), painted shortly after Poussin arrived in Rome as a young artist working to establish his reputation in the city. The work is a pendant to The Death of Eurydice (1626), which is currently on view at the Nouveau Musée National de Monaco’s Villa Paloma as part of Le Sentiment de la Nature: Contemporary Art in the Mirror of Poussin — the NMNM’s spring exhibition running through 25th May. Voena’s decision to bring Apollo and Daphne to the fair creates a rare opportunity to encounter the two companion paintings within the same visit, one in a museum context and one at market.
The period in which both works were painted represents a pivotal moment in Poussin’s career — the years in which he was developing the classical approach to landscape that would become enormously influential across subsequent centuries of European painting.
Nicolas Poussin, Les Andelys 1594–1665 Rome Apollo and Daphne, 1625–26, Oil on canvas, 63 x 77 cm (24 3/4 x 30 1/4 in.)
Nature as a common thread
The gallery has built the rest of its presentation around the theme of nature, creating a dialogue that spans four centuries. Damien Hirst’s monumental triptych Who’s Afraid of Red, Yellow and Blue (2000) uses butterflies and household paint across three large panels to reflect on the ephemeral qualities of beauty and life, while also referencing Barnett Newman’s series of the same name.
Damien Hirst Bristol b. 1965 Who’s Afraid of Red, Yellow and Blue, 2000 Butterflies and household gloss paint on canvas, Triptych: 180 x 180 cm (70 7/8 x 70 7/8 in.) Each panel: 60 x 180 cm (23 5/8 x 70 7/8 in.)
Kristy Chan’s Small talk about the weather (2022) brings a more agitated energy — dense, frenzied brushwork sweeping across broad fields of colour — exploring how nature still underpins the most ordinary of human exchanges. Monegasque artist Philippe Pastor’s Bleu Monochrome series (2012–25) takes the engagement with the natural world furthest of all: painted with natural pigments on canvases exposed to the elements, the works invite nature itself into the creative process.
Rounding out the presentation are three works on paper by Pablo Picasso, spanning 1923 to 1959 and reflecting the breadth of his stylistic shifts across that period, with subjects ranging from photographer Dora Maar to Manet’s Déjeuner sur l’herbe.
Art Monte-Carlo runs from 29th April to 1st May at the Grimaldi Forum.
Main image: Pablo Picasso, Málaga 1881–1973 Mougins, Le Petit Déjeuner, 1959, Signed and dated ‘23.12.59 / Picasso’ (upper right), Ink and watercolour on paper
All the headlines and highlights from Monaco, direct to you every morning
