How the French do flash-mobs

(Rex Features)

Obliged to dress in white and summoned by text message, phone call or email to a secret location 15 minutes beforehand, the participants in Paris's Big Open Air White Dinner more than earn their supper.

The annual event took place this year in the courtyard of the Louvre museum, where nearly 12,000 guests suddenly appeared, to the bewilderment of onlookers. The attendance was a new record, according to organisers. In previous years, the event has taken place near the Arc de Triomphe and in the Place de la Concorde.