Montserrat Abbey received the Canigó Prize this Thursday, awarded by the Catalan Summer University (UCE) in recognition of its thousand-year history, inseparable from that of Catalonia. But both the award ceremony and the presentation of the prize, which was received by Father Abbot Manel Gasch, were marked by a profound change. due to the controversial participation of Felipe VI at the millennium celebration event, which unleashed an earthquake within Catalan Catholicism. During the ceremony, Gasch had to listen to several calls for Montserrat to continue being "the spiritual refuge," the "center of cultural resistance," and the "common home" of the Països Catalans. These were the words used by the Archbishop of Tarragona and president of the Tarragona Episcopal Conference, Joan Planellas, in his speech to the audience.

"Here, we're holding on as best we can." This is what Maria, a resident of Prada, says. She has been attending the Catalan Summer University (UCE) for years and sadly describes how Catalan is being lost in everyday life in Northern Catalonia, in businesses and homes. She turns to a couple of journalists in the UCE auditorium: she's curious to know which part of the Principality the accent she's heard them speak with corresponds to. Before the talk begins, she takes the opportunity to point out that, when she goes down to the Principality, she never switches languages: "When I go to Girona, I always speak Catalan. If they speak to me in Spanish, I leave. Catalan must be defended," she claims. But it's difficult to do so when, across the border, the French state tries by every means to keep it out of the institutions.

Italian fashion house Prada announced this Thursday the acquisition of 100% of Versace for €1.25 billion. The purchase of the brand founded by Italian designer Gianni Versace, which was previously owned by the Capri Holdings group, was closed for that amount. "We are pleased to welcome Versace to the Prada group and open a new chapter for a brand with which we share an unwavering commitment to creativity, product care, and a strong cultural heritage," said Prada Chairman and CEO Patrizio Bertelli. The company's co-founder, along with his wife, Miuccia Prada, emphasized that the brand "is ready and well positioned to write a new page in Versace's history, build on the group's values, and continue with confidence and rigorous determination."

Luxury label Prada is finalising a deal to buy the Versace brand from fashion group Capri Holdings Ltd. for a price of more than 1.5 billion euros, as published Bloomberg This Monday. Both companies could reach an agreement for the acquisition of the brand created by the late designer Gianni Versace this month, according to sources close to the negotiations cited by the publication.