Watch: Bordeaux's town hall goes up in flames as protests worsen

Protesters angered by Emmanuel Macron’s pension reforms set part of Bordeaux’s town hall on fire on Thursday, after a day of nationwide demonstrations that brought France to a standstill.

Videos shared widely on social media showed towering flames climbing up the building’s front doors, curling round a portico as cheers can be heard from a crowd of people gathered in the town square.

Construction of the sprawling Bordeaux Hotel de Ville was completed in 1778, just over a decade before the French Revolution.

The uproar over the imposition of the reforms – which the government chose to push through without a parliamentary vote – has turned into the biggest domestic crisis of Macron’s second term in office.

The unrest also threatens to cast a shadow over King Charles III’s visit to France next week, in what will be the first foreign visit he has made as monarch.

Unions have announced fresh strikes and protests for Tuesday, the second full day of his visit.

The King and Queen Consort plan to tour areas of France’s Bordeaux region, which last year were ravaged by wildfires widely blamed on global warming.