An Acadian Hero
Lyse Doucet is one of my favourite broadcasters and in some ways a bit of a hero, as she seems so unfazed of all the horrors she has faced, just being the total professional.
Like many I suppose, I’d always assumed she was from Quebec, due to her French name and her accent. But she is actually an Acadian, a group, who I knew little of until I looked Lyse up last night. Wikipedia says this.
Although today most of the Acadians and Québécois are French speaking (francophone) Canadians, Acadia was a distinct colony of New France, and was geographically and administratively separate from the French colony of Canada (modern day Quebec), which led to Acadians and Québécois developing two rather distinct histories and cultures.
I first became aware of Lyse, when she was reporting from Iran. In one report for From Our Own Correspondent, she described how the Russian Ambassador at a news conference, had started chatting her up, and was totally surprised, when he found the lady in the burkha was Canadian.
I do find it strange that two of my heroes are called Lyse or Lise. The other is of course Lise Meitner.
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