Moulin Rouge windmill restored after collapse - in time for Olympics

Paris’ famed Moulin Rouge cabaret got its iconic red windmill back on Friday after it collapsed earlier this year.

A special ceremony that featured can-can dancing on the plaza outside marked the restoration of the windmill – an emblem of the surrounding Montmartre neighbourhood.

The mill’s huge sails and part of the cabaret’s illuminated sign crashed to the ground after a show in April due to a technical problem, according to its director.

No one was hurt and the mayor of Paris’ 18th district said the structure was not in danger.

The cabaret scrambled to repair the damage before the Olympic torch relay passes through the area on 15 July.

The windmill was first illuminated on 6 October 1889 at the opening of the Moulin Rouge. The cabaret is best known as the birthplace of the modern form of the can-can dance.

The cabaret, which is marking its 135th anniversary this year, is a major tourist attraction and was the subject of the 2001 Baz Luhrmann film musical starring Nicole Kidman.