Sitges News Round Up Autumn 2024

We hope you enjoy this summary of the recent news about Sitges, Catalonia and Spain that you may have missed.

Sitges News

With the Fantasy Film Festival fast approaching, it is no surprise that many news sites are focusing on the films that will be included in the line up and on the actors that will be attending. Fans of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul will be interested to note that Gincarlo Esposito (who plays Gus Fring in both) will be honoured during the festival for these and other parts he has played throughout his career, as reported, for example, by theobjective.com. Meanwhile, as reported by hobbyconsolas.com and others, Stephen King has heartily recommended one of the films that will be featured in the festival; namely, ‘The Rule of Jenny Pen’ starring John Lithgow and Geoffrey Rush. The plot sounds right up King’s street: ” Confined to a remote nursing home and trapped in his stroke-affected body, a former judge must stop a psychopathic elderly man who employs a child puppet to abuse the nursing home’s residents with deadly consequences .”

Also on the subject of the festival, many outlets including Antena 3 report that one of the jurists for the Brigadoon section of the festival, Mariona Borrull, has resigned her post in protest at what she calls ‘an absence of female and non-binary directors in the selection’ which she claims is ‘not fair’. The festival, for its part, responded that it never asks for the sexual identity of directors and therefore would not know whether any describe themselves as non-binary or not. With regard to female directors, the festival pointed out that female directors have been and are actively celebrated by the festival in many ways, even if they have not been included in this particular section this year.

In other Sitges news, an ex mayor and a Sitges councillor have both been accused of allowing the illegal construction of a car park in a protected area. This carries a possible sentence of 10 months in prison and a fine for former mayor Miguel Forns and councillor Carme Almirall. As reported in El Periodico, the area in question is located near the Pins Bens sports centre on C/Cardenal Vidal i Barraquer, and was meant to be protected for public leisure and/or relaxation. The head of the town hall’s works department and the acting municipal secretary at the time of the approval of the works are also being charged.

DJ Calvin Harris and singer Rosalia have also been connected with Sitges in the news, the former due to being spotted in the town whilst attending Radio 2 host Scott Mills’ wedding and the latter because she has purchased an apartment near the town

And Sitges news would not be complete without the traditional eulogies in the international press. CNN carried an article about a NYC expat who appreciates the town’s accessibility to Barcelona as well as the slower paced Mediterranean environment. Meanwhile, the WSJ reports (paywall) that Sitges is booming. According to the paper, Sitges had previously been ‘under the radar’ for US buyers and vacationers. Among its advantages, says the report, is that it is better positioned for transatlantic flights than the two areas that compete with it in terms of popularity amongst well-heeled buyers (Cadaqués and Marbella), and has better year round entertainment. The couple featured in the article also preferred Sitges to their original dream destination (the South of France) because of its diversity and welcoming atmosphere. The article further points out that sales of property to Americans has doubled in recent years. The town is now firmly on the radar for Americans, it seems!

Catalonia News

As for Catalonia, a few outlets commented on how the region is entering a new period of stability now that it has elected the first non-separatist president in over a decade. The socialist president, Salvador Illa, has seemingly underlined this new attitude by restoring the Spanish flag to its former position in the Generalitat, and greeting the visiting king in person (as reported for example, here. ) Around the same time, former separatist president Carles Puigdemont, who is in self imposed exile in Waterloo, snuck into Barcelona to talk to an adoring crowd, before once again eluding Spanish authorities with the help of some sympathetic Catalan policemen.

One of Illa’s first announcements was that he is planning to reduce Catalonia’s dependance on rainwater, by building new desalination plants, among other measures.

Elsewhere, the UAB reported that 60% of Catalonia’s population agrees with immigration, and that there have been ‘huge improvements’ (since the 1990s) in responses to questions such as ‘would you like to have a boss who is of a different race’.

Finally on Catalonia, the (sometimes rowdy) resort town of Salou, a mere 50 mins by car from Sitges, has been declared the Catalan Capital of Culture for 2025. The main idea of the designation is to increase the dissemination of Catalan language and culture. The town is preparing a year’s worth of events, cultural activities and initiatives to celebrate its new role.

Spain News

Several outlets, including the Guardian, reported on Spain’s spat with Mexico. This was caused by Mexico’s new left wing president refusing to invite Spain’s king to her inauguration, because of his perceived failure to apologise for crimes committed against indigenous people 500 years ago.

Also in the spirit of Spain-bashing, the Spectator carried an article alleging that Spain makes for an awful holiday, and is ‘the worst country in Western Europe’. The 42 year old writer, Zoe Strimpel, bemoans the stinking drains experienced during the visits of her youth, and calls Barcelona ‘a bewildering tundra of tat and dive bars, dotted with the ugliest architecture on earth – that of Gaudi. It’s got a bang average beach, bang average buildings and overpriced food. Now it’s an anti-tourism war zone and you’ll get pickpocketed as a bonus.’ Having then taken aim at Spanish politics, she subsequently attacks Spanish food (‘so bad and yet so hyped’); Spanish literature ( there’s nothing other than Cervantes, apparently); and bullfighting.

As if this were not enough, Portugal’s new chief of defence has waded in by claiming a small town in Extremadura for Portugal. According to Nuno Melo, Olivenza ‘is Portuguese’, which has come as a surprise to its residents, its mayor, and even to some people in the Portuguese government. The town was founded in Spain in 1230; ceded to Portugal from 1297, given back to Spain in 1640, given back to Portugal in 1668, and again acquired by Spain in 1801.

In health news, it has been reported that some batches of the popular antibiotic Augmentine have been recalled (batch CP3W, expiry 31/08/25); and that the most vulnerable in society will receive protheses and wheelchairs free of charge.

As for technology, Microsoft has announced the opening of its first cloud region in Spain, which it claims will accelerate the development of the AI economy; generate 10.7 billion euros to Spain’s GDP; and create 77,000 jobs between now and 2030. The cloud centre, called ‘Spain Central’, will provide technologies for ‘productivity, data analytics, cybersecurity, computing and storage (Azure, Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, Power Platform), and also include generative Artificial Intelligence services, thus placing this cloud region among the most advanced in Europe’.

And finally the Vanguardia reports that wolves will continue to be protected in Spain. This is despite a surge in other EU countries allowing them to be hunted, coincidentally after European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen’s favourite pony was killed by one of the creatures.

PS did you know we have 20+ new properties listed on our site? Plus, if you enquire through our site, you get a guaranteed English speaking service throughout the visit and/or purchase process, no matter which agent is marketing the property….and all absolutely free of charge. If you’ve got friends looking for property in the area, do let them know!