The Duchess of Cambridge, the former Kate Middleton, and her husband, Prince William, talk with Prince Albert and Princess Charlene of Monaco at Queen Elizabeth II's diamond jubilee lunch at Windsor Castle yesterday. Both couples were married last year.

PHOTO: John Stilwell/AFP/Getty (pool)

An attack on a conductor on a train from Monaco to Nice earlier today has prompted the CGT trade union to call a 24-hour stoppage in the PACA region from 20:00 next Wednesday. A union spokesman said it was the 16th such attack in the Alpes-Maritimes since the start of the year. He claimed that the management of SNCF fails to take these attacks seriously, adding that the strike is intended to make the railway company focus on the problem. Nice-Riquiez, Nice-Saint-Augustin, Saint-Laurent-du-Var and Cagnes-sur-Mer are hotspots for these attacks.

Monaco's footballers won 2-1 away to Boulogne last night, pushing them up to eighth place in France's Ligue 2. Monaco ended the season with 13 wins, 13 draws and 12 losses for 52 points. In the middle of the season Monaco were glued to 19th position in the league, facing relegation again floowing their fall from Ligue 2 last year.

The Hollywood Reporter has been speculating who will turn up to the Nights in Monaco Gala on May 23 at the Hotel de Paris. The charity event will be attended by Prince Albert and former US president Bill Clinton. Proceeds from the evening, at which the cheapest tickets will cost €5,000, will go to the Prince Albert II Foundation and the William J Clinton Foundation, whose stated purpose is to "strengthen the capacity of people throughout the world to meet the challenges of global interdependence." The event has been timed to coincide with the Cannes Film Festival in the hope of attracting stars such as Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.

PHOTO: Hollywood celebs Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie

A 65 year-old Italian resident of Monaco has been sentenced to one month in jail, suspended, after admitting stealing a handbag inside the Casino. The man said he didn’t know what came over him. The victim, a young woman, was greatly inconvenienced by the bag, in which she was keeping cash to pay her hotel bill. ID documents and €400 were in her handbag, which she had put down while she played the machines. The guilty party was also ordered to pay €1,000 in damages to his victim.

PHOTO: The Casino at dusk

Today is a state holiday in Monaco to celebrate Ascension. Tomorrow, Friday, is a bank holiday, and so many people will 'take the bridge' and have already left town for a long weekend break. However, we will still be working at Monaco Life and more news stories will be added here during the day.

In an interview with Monaco Life, Jonathan Rowland, CEO of Banque Havilland in Monaco, said that the financial crisis is set to continue for some time: “The crisis is not over by any stretch of the imagination. We are witnessing the painful deleveraging of excess built over the last 20 years. With the imminent collapse of parts of the eurozone we see a lot of uncertainty but huge opportunity for liquid investors, of which our group is one.” To read the full interview, please go to the FEATURES section or click on MORE.

PHOTO: Jonathan Rowland, CEO of Banque Havilland in Monaco.

Monaco’s Environment Directorate invites you to explore the underwater reserve of the Principality with Pierre Frolla, World Champion scuba diver, next Tuesday May 22 from 9:30 to 16:30 in Larvotto. The Blue School and MAFB (Monegasque Association for Nature) will be on hand to provide assistance. The objective of this operation is to improve the knowledge of Monaco’s underwater biodiversity and to mark World Biodiversity Day. Larvotto’s underwater reserve was created in 1976 and contains more than 50 species of fish, 14 species of algae, 33 species of sponges and 26 species of molluscs on artificial reefs. The rendezvous point is the Ecole Bleue on Larvotto beach.

PHOTO: Prince Albert with Pierre Frolla in May, 2011