Liège, the ‘cité ardente’, has undergone considerable change. The disappearance of the mines and decline of the steel industry hit the city hard. But the saying ‘Do as they do in Liège, let it rain’ may no longer apply. For the economic capital of Wallonia, with a population of 200,000, or 600,000 including suburbs, is being reborn. The steel workers are battling to save its last blast furnaces; an underground system, trams and high-speed train station will transform its centre; and its film industry, starting with the Dardenne brothers, is booming. Now the city dreams of hosting host Expo 2017