THE LILLE “BRADERIE” | M6 | 66 minutes

The great Lille flea-market is the North’s major get together as people start back to work. The population of the Flanders capital increases tenfold. For two days, over the first weekend in September, it attracts two million bargain hunters and the curious looking for great deals. Some come in search of that last coffee grinder that will complete their collection, others look for toys for their youngest at prices defying all competition. Across 100 km of stalls, 8,000 exhibitors, among them 400 professional antique dealers, make every effort to seduce. For Constance, the mother of Virgile, 13, and Eliott, 10, the market is a first. This single mother is clearing out her closets. Selling, recycling to buy something better later on. They’ve reserved their 5 meters of pavement to sell not just garments they’ve outgrown, but little treasures like Pokemon cards that are a magnet to buyers. Christophe and Vincent, from Lille, are two informed amateurs of flea-markets and yard sales. They’re not pros, but they have the professional eye. Their basement is crammed with unusual objects that can sell for a tidy sum. During the market, they will sell objects already unearthed and look to buy more. For Christophe, the Lille Braderie is sacred.  For 27 years he’s been scouring the city’s alleys during the grand weekend. Finally, over more than thirty hours, this marathon with its frenzy of buying will be managed with an iron fist, but also a broad smile, by Floriane, appointed orchestral conductor of the show by the Lille city hall. Alongside her, you witness the inner workings of the event, from the last-minute preparations to the final whistle. But the great flea-market also means companionship around a dish of the celebrated moules frites (mussels and French fries). 30 tonnes of fries and 500 tonnes of mussels will be eaten. Amidst the crowds and the mussels, we plunge deep into the North’s great flea-market.