The Suisse romande (lit.:"Romance Switzerland") is a local name for the French-speaking districts of western Switzerland. The name Romandie (Romandy) is also used. (Note that in French the word "romande" is an adjective and is not capitalised.) The term "Suisse romand" is used to refer to Swiss French, the variety of French spoken in Switzerland. There are about 1.6 million French-speakers in Switzerland, about 20% of the total population.

The word "romand/romande" indicates the Latin or Roman origin of the French language and the general orientation of the region to the French-speaking cultural sphere and to Roman Law. It is used in contrast to "Suisse alémanique" (German Switzerland) and "Suisse italienne" (Italian Switzerland).

The Suisse romande is not a precisely defined area, but in general includes the Cantons of Fribourg, Geneva, Jura, Neuchâtel, western Valais, Vaud and the northern part of Berne (known as the Jura Bienne or the Bernese Jura). The city of Geneva constitutes the largest urban area of the region.

Sir Graham Robert Watson (born 23 March 1956) is a European politician from the United Kingdom. He has served as a Member of the European Parliament for South West England since 1994 and was the leader of the Group of the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party 2002–2004 and the first leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe 2004–2009. Since 2011, he is the President of the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party.

Graham Watson was born in Rothesay on the Isle of Bute (Scotland, United Kingdom). His father was an officer in the Royal Navy and his mother a teacher. Watson was educated at the City of Bath Boys' School, where he played violin in the school orchestra. He later returned to Scotland to attend Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh where he graduated in 1979 with a Bachelor of Arts in modern languages. This allowed him to work as an interpreter between 1979 and 1980, he now speaks four European languages. After 1980 he worked as an administrator at Paisley College until 1983.

Marius Müller-Westernhagen (born December 6, 1948 in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia) is a German actor and musician.

Possibly best known for the maudlin hit "Johnny Walker", Marius Müller Westernhagen has been a feature in German rock music since the mid seventies. Marius is known for his energetic public concerts, and his fans know his anthem-like songs by heart.

While keeping away from the merely fashionable, Marius has nevertheless managed to reinvent himself every few years, and is popular with multiple generations of Germans. Because of his singing almost exclusively in German in a country where pop and rock are primarily performed in English, Westernhagen originally seemed destined for obscurity, but has managed to use this to his advantage, defining himself as a durable alternative to the perceivedly manufactured English-language hits of America and the UK.

Westernhagen remains little known outside the German-speaking countries.

Müller-Westernhagen has also acted in films and in radio.