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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, ~~D.C.~~DC 20549

FORM 6-K

REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Report on Form 6-K dated 1214 ~~August~~November 2003

ORANGE plc
(Name of Registrant)

St. James Court, Great Park Road
Almondsbury Park, Bradley Stoke
Bristol BS32 4QJ
England
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.

Form 20-F: ý Form 40-F: o

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1):

Yes: o No: ý

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7):

Yes: o No: ý

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the information contained in this form is also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Yes: o No: ý

Enclosure:

—: Press statement dated 12 November 2003 "Orange Board to appoint Sanjiv Ahuja as Director".

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Orange plc has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

	ORANGE PLC
Date: 29 October 2003	By:	/s/ PHILIPPE MCALLISTER
	Name:	Philippe McAllister
	Title:	Director

29 October 2003

ORANGE ACCELERATES TOP LINE GROWTH IN THIRD QUARTER 2003

After nine months of significant improvement, Orange has delivered an excellent third quarter performance with accelerating top line growth. Orange third quarter customer and revenue numbers exceed market expectations, showing strong customer and revenue growth across all its businesses, as the strategy announced in June by the new management team continues to gain momentum and deliver results.

Key Highlights

All comparisons throughout this press release are with reported numbers for the three-quarters ended 30 September 2002—unless otherwise stated.

~~Commenting~~PRESS ~~on these third quarter figures to 30 September 2003, Sol Trujillo, Chief Executive Officer of Orange SA, said:~~RELEASE

"I ~~am delighted by the continued improvement in performance through the third quarter and by the figures that we are announcing today. Net additions of~~ ~~1.3 million~~ ~~customers and an 8.1% hike in revenues in the third quarter highlight that Orange is beginning to accelerate growth, as I believed it could when I became CEO earlier in the year. We~~ ~~are~~ORANGE onBOARD ~~track~~TO orAPPOINT ~~ahead~~SANJIV ofAHUJA ~~everything~~AS we committed to in our June strategy presentation. We have the right team and these results provide the evidence with the whole group motoring. In particular, I am pleased that we have demonstrated over the past seven months that with careful management of costs and appropriate investment, excellent growth can be achieved throughout the Group. And this is just the beginning. DIRECTOR

~~"A strong~~Paris/London, ~~performance~~12 inNovember 2003—The ~~France~~Board isof ~~key~~Directors toof Orange. ~~Revenue~~SA ~~growth~~met ofon ~~almost~~4 November 2003, ~~10%~~under ~~and~~the ~~customer~~chairmanship ~~growth~~of ~~near~~Thierry toBreton. ~~doubling~~It inwas Q3decided ~~2003~~to ~~versus~~propose Q2Sanjiv ~~2003~~Ahuja isas ~~excellent.~~a ~~Orange~~new ~~UK's~~Board ~~performance~~Director ~~has been~~to ~~strong~~the ~~too,~~next ~~recording~~Orange ashareholder 7meeting.9% ~~pro~~Until ~~forma~~that ~~revenue~~time, ~~growth~~Sanjiv ~~and~~Ahuja will ~~increasing~~be ~~customer~~invited ~~numbers~~to ~~despite~~attend ~~operating~~Orange inSA aBoard ~~fiercely competitive marketplace~~meetings.

~~"The~~Sanjiv ~~real~~joined ~~value~~Orange ~~and~~SA ~~importance~~in ofApril 23, ~~our~~2003 ~~international~~as ~~portfolio~~Chief ~~also~~Operating ~~shines~~Officer. ~~through~~He inwas ~~today's~~previously ~~figures,~~CEO ~~with~~of ~~strong~~Comstellar ~~customer~~Technologies, ~~growth~~a ~~bringing~~California-based ~~its~~company ~~base~~focused toon ~~just~~creating ~~under~~and ~~14 million,~~bringing ~~overtaking~~to ~~the~~market UKinnovative ~~for~~communications ~~the~~technologies. ~~first~~He ~~time,~~was ~~and~~a ~~providing~~co-founder ~~Orange~~of ~~with~~the ~~82%~~company ofin ~~its~~2000, ~~customer~~whose ~~growth~~financial inpartners ~~the~~include ~~last~~Goldman ~~nine~~Sachs, ~~months.~~JP ~~All~~Morgan ~~Group-controlled~~and ~~businesses~~Lehman ~~have~~Brothers. ~~continued~~Prior to ~~achieve~~this he ~~the~~was ~~financial~~president ~~targets~~of ~~that we~~Telcordia ~~set~~Technologies, ~~for~~providers ~~them~~of inconsulting ~~June.~~services Weand ~~believe~~communications ~~our~~software ~~international~~used ~~footprint~~by ~~holds~~80 aper ~~huge~~cent ~~potential~~of ~~for~~the ~~Orange~~US telecommunications network."

~~Strategy~~ Sanjiv began his career at IBM in 1979 as a software engineer, and ~~the~~went ~~next~~on ~~phase~~to hold a variety of ~~the~~roles ~~Orange~~in ~~Experience~~ software development, design and marketing at IBM until 1994. He has a degree in electrical engineering from Delhi University, India, and a Masters in computer science from Columbia University in New York.

OnNotes 24to June 2003, Orange SA announced its new Group strategy and today's strong financial figures demonstrate the traction that is being gained by Orange's unique strategy, namely of building financial growth through: Editors

In The Orange group, a ~~separate~~subsidiary ~~announcement~~of ~~today~~France Télécom, ~~Orange~~ is ~~launching~~one of the world's largest mobile communications companies, with operations in 19 countries across Europe and beyond. It provides a ~~series~~broad range of ~~initiatives~~personal communications services, including Orange GSM1800 services and other digital cellular telephone services. The Orange brand operates in the UK, ~~and~~ France, ~~next~~Switzerland, ~~week~~Romania, ~~and~~Denmark, ~~across~~Slovakia, ~~other~~Luxembourg, ~~countries~~Thailand, inthe Q1Ivory ~~2004~~Coast, ~~intended~~the toDominican ~~make~~Republic, itCameroon, ~~easy~~the toNetherlands, ~~access~~Botswana ~~new~~and Madagascar. The ~~compelling,~~Orange ~~personalised~~group also has controlled operations in Belgium (Mobistar). The Orange ~~services~~group has a joint controlling interest in Egypt (MobiNil) and ~~increase~~minority ~~adoption~~interests in Portugal (Optimus), Austria (Connect Austria), and Mumbai/India (BPL Mobile). ~~This~~As ~~next~~at ~~phase~~30 ofSeptember 2003, the Orange ~~Experience~~Group ~~will~~had ~~continue~~46.9 million tocustomers, Orange ~~differentiate~~France ~~Orange~~19.6 million, of which 19.2 million (97.7%) were active under the "Autorité de Régulation des Télécommunications" ("ART") definition, and ~~drive~~the ~~real~~Orange ~~business~~UK ~~growth~~active customer base was 13.4 million.

New Performance Metrics

France Telecom Press Office		+ 33 (0)1 44 44 93 93
Orange Media Centre		+ 44 (0) 20 7984 2000

With Orange's strategy focused on delivering a unique customer experience and driving financial growth, performance can no longer be measured simply by the numbers of subscribers and devices sold, but should also be measured by non-voice usage and adoption rates. Orange is today announcing a number of new key performance metrics by which it intends to manage its business and judge its performance. These are:

FY ~~2003~~ ~~guidance and new Capex guidance~~ SIGNATURES

~~With~~Pursuant ~~today's~~to ~~strong~~the ~~reported~~requirements ~~performance~~of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Orange ~~remains~~plc ~~very~~has ~~confident~~duly ~~that~~caused itthis ~~can~~report ~~achieve~~to be signed on its FYbehalf ~~2003~~by ~~financial~~the ~~targets~~undersigned, thereunto ~~of:~~duly authorized.

In addition, Orange is reducing its capital expenditure forecasts for FY2003 to between €2.1–2.2 billion (vs. €2.4 billion previously) due to deferred spend and further price reductions from suppliers.

	ORANGE PLC
DATE: 14^TH NOVEMBER 2003	By:	/s/ PHILIPPE MCALLISTER
	Name:	Philippe McAllister
	Title:	Director

Orange's cumulative capex and operating free cash flow guidance for FY2003—FY2005 remain unchanged at €7–8 billion and at least €14 billion, respectively.

Commenting on these third quarter figures to 30 September 2003, Chief Financial Officer, Wilfried Verstraete added:

"Our results demonstrate that the strategy we announced in June is starting to bear fruit. I am particularly pleased with our Q3 2003 results: all our top line growth metrics are showing solid trends and the growth acceleration in the last quarter of 2003 is supportive of our view for the rest of the year and for 2004.

"Orange is achieving excellent results with annual rolling ARPU growth in the UK of 5.9% to £270 and a second consecutive quarterly increase in France to €377. At the same time, overall usage has been increasing in our key markets for six consecutive quarters. Those trends on ARPU and usage, coupled with excellent customer growth across our footprint, are the foundations for Orange future financial performance.

"We believe that in mature markets that are evolving towards new models of growth there needs to be some new operating metrics of performance that complement traditional metrics such as ARPU and customer subscriptions. Today we have highlighted some of the measures we intend to adopt in the management and judgement of our business. We believe they will become yardsticks for the wider industry in general."

Sol Trujillo concluded:

"Today's great results speak for themselves—we've had two strong quarters and the whole group is firing on all cylinders. We are laying the foundations for accelerating growth, and the announcement of the next phase of the Orange Experience is one more step on our growth path.

We believe passionately that what our customers want is real ease of use and functionality that is appropriate to them individually, rather than 'one size fits all'. Our dedication to customer intimacy and a consistent global strategy, delivered locally, will be the real drivers for the business going forward."

"The future's bright, the future's Orange"

Group operating and selected financial data for the nine months ended 30 September 2003(1)(2)

1. Revenues

Orange Group total revenues were €13,329 million for the nine months ended 30 September 2003, a 6.3% increase over the same period last year (reported revenues of €12,543 million). On a pro forma basis underlying revenue growth was 9.8%.

Orange Group Q3 2003 revenues were up 8.1% to €4.7 billion on Q2 2003, compared to a revenue growth of 2.5% during the second quarter of 2003 vs. Q1 2003, highlighting that revenue growth has accelerated.

Orange France(3) total revenues grew 5.7% for the nine months ended 30 September 2003, to €5,938 million while Orange UK total revenues (in Euros) decreased by 2.0% due to the degradation of the Euro/£ exchange rate. On a pro forma basis Orange UK revenues were up 7.9%. Total revenues for Rest of World(4) were €3,195 million, up 21.1% (up 21.0% on a pro forma basis).

The Group top line is gaining momentum.

On a quarter to quarter basis, Orange France reported total revenues grew 9.8% compared to a reported total revenues growth of 4.2% in Q2 2003 vs. Q1 2003. In Q3 2003, Orange UK reported total revenues grew 3.8% compared to a slight decrease in reported revenues in Q2 2003 relative to Q1 2003, and reported total revenues for Rest of World were up 10.7% versus Q2 2003 against an increase of 3.9% in Q2 2003 relative to Q1 2003.

Orange Group recurring network revenues increased 6.3%. On a pro forma basis recurring network revenues grew 9.7%.

Orange Group Q3 2003 network revenues were up 6.4% to €4.3 billion on Q2 2003, versus a network revenue growth of 2.2% during Q2 2003 versus Q1 2003.

Orange France recurring network revenues grew 4.9% to €5,465 million; Orange UK recurring network revenues(5) (in Euros) were €3,925 million and up 9.1% on a pro forma basis. Recurring network revenues for Rest of World were €2,892 million, up 22.2% (up 21.9% on a pro forma basis).

On a quarter to quarter basis, Orange France reported network revenues grew 7.0% compared to a reported network revenues growth of 3.0% in Q2 2003 vs Q1 2003. Orange UK reported network revenues grew 3.1% compared to steady reported network revenues over the second quarter of 2003 relative to Q1 2003, and reported network revenues for Rest of World were up 10.0% versus 4.5% during Q2 2003 relative to Q1 2003.

Revenues from non-voice services grew 25.5% to €1,510 million, representing 12.4% of Orange Group recurring network revenues.

For Orange UK, 15.5% of recurring network revenues came from non-voice services, compared to 14.0% over the nine months ended 30 September 2002.

Orange France non-voice revenues(6) represented 11.2% of network revenues, up from 8.5% over the nine months ended 30 September 2002. Non-voice revenues accounted for more than 10% of recurring network revenues in Belgium, Switzerland, Denmark as well as in the Netherlands and are continuing to grow strongly.

2. Annual average Revenue Per User ("ARPU")(7) and Usage

Orange France overall annual rolling ARPU has enjoyed a second consecutive quarterly increase to reach €377 in Q3 2003 vs €380 in Q3 2002, in spite of the termination rate cut of 15% on 1 January 2003.

For the twelve months ended September 2003, Orange France contract ARPU was €549 (€566 at Q3 2002) and prepay ARPU was €158 (€166 at Q3 2002).

For the second consecutive quarter, ARPU has increased for Orange France to €377 from €376 in Q2 2003 and €375 in Q1 2003.

Orange UK overall annual rolling ARPU increased by 5.9% to £270. Orange UK overall annual rolling ARPU increased over the third quarter of 2003 despite a 15% cut on termination rates in July 2003.

Orange UK contract ARPU increased 3.8% to £572, while prepay ARPU increased 2.4% to £127. Orange UK ARPU has been increasing for the last 6 quarters.

For Orange France as well as Orange UK, ARPU on non-voice services has increased. As of the end of September 2003, non-voice ARPU accounts for 10.9% of Orange France annual rolling ARPU and 15.6% of Orange UK's, compared to 8.7% and 13.7% respectively at the end of September 2002.

Voice usage has been increasing as well, with six consecutive quarters of increase in average number of minutes used per customer for Orange UK and six consecutive quarters for Orange France.

3. Customers(9)

Orange Group increased its total controlled customer base by 3.7 million from Q3 2002 to 46.9 million at 30 September 2003, 8.6% above reported Q3 2002 closing base of 43.2 million. Rest of World accounted for 82% of the customer growth in the first nine months of this year.

On a quarterly basis, Orange Group added 1,325K customers in Q3 2003, versus 696K customers in Q2 2003 and 557k in Q1 2003, demonstrating accelerating growth.

Orange France added 401k net new customers in the three first quarters of 2003, taking its registered customer base to 19.6 million, of which 19.2 million (97.7%) are active under the "Autorité de Régulation des Télécommunications" ("ART") definition. Orange France registered 583k net new contract customers, and a reduction of 182k in the prepay base as inactivity levels increased.

Orange France has recorded net adds of 249K customers during Q3 2003, an accelerating performance to the 137K net adds recorded for Q2 2003. In the last three months, Orange France registered 303k net new contract customers, and a reduction of 54k in prepay customers.

Market penetration in France has gone up by 1.2% over the last quarter to 66.5%, indicating that the French market is catching up with other Western European markets. According to the ART (Autorité de Régulation des Télécommunications), Orange France had a market share of 48.9% at the end of September 2003. This implies a 33.2% share of net adds over the third quarter of 2003, compared to a 30.7% share of net adds in Q2 2003 and a 4.8% share of net adds in Q1 2003.

As a consequence, Orange France has improved its customer mix to 57% of the total base, from 55% at the end of Q3 2002, with 11.3 million registered contract customers at the end of September 2003.

Orange UK saw its customer base increase by 59k customers in the first three quarters of 2003, with an active customer base of 13.4 million at the end of September 2003. As with Orange France, focus on high quality customers was successful, with 109k new net additions on contract tariffs and a reduction of 50k on prepay.

Orange UK has recorded net adds of 113K customers during Q3 2003, an accelerating performance to the decrease of 55K customers recorded for Q2 2003. As with Orange France, the third quarter was the best this year for Orange UK, with 49K net new contract customers and 64K net new prepay customers.

The UK contract customer base ended the first nine months of the year at 4.3 million, representing 33% of the customer base (32% at the end of Q3 2002). The UK also had 9.0 million prepay customers.

Orange Rest of World operations reflect strong underlying customer growth(8). The combined Rest of World operations added 2.1 million net new customers in the nine months to end September 2003, an increase of 141% on a pro forma basis. Orange's customer base for the Rest of the World was 14.0 million at the end of September 2003.

Orange Rest of World has recorded net adds of 963K customers during Q3 2003, an accelerating performance to the 614K net adds recorded for Q2 2003.

For the first time, Orange Rest of World exceeds Orange UK in terms of number of customers.

For further information, please contact:

Orange S.A.
Investor Relations		+ 44 (0) 20 7984 1710
Media Centre		+ 44 (0) 20 7984 2000
Financial Dynamics, Giles Sanderson		+44 (0) 20 7831 3113
France Telecom
Press Office		+ 33 (0) 1 44 44 93 93

Selected information for the period ended 30 September 2003 and 2002

		Quarter ended				Nine months ended 30 September
(millions of €)		30 September 2003		30 June 2003		2003		2002(1)(2)		2002(1)
		(unaudited)		(unaudited)		(unaudited)		pro forma (unaudited)		Reported (unaudited)
Total revenues
Orange France		2,132		1,942		5,938		5,616		5,616
Orange UK		1,477		1,423		4,329		4,011		4,419
Rest of World		1,152		1,041		3,195		2,641		2,638
Inter segment eliminations		(47	)	(46	)	(133	)	(127	)	(130	)
Total		4,714		4,360		13,329		12,141		12,543
Network revenues
Orange France		1,923		1,797		5,465		5,211		5,211
Orange UK		1,335		1,295		3,925		3,598		3,964
Rest of World		1,041		946		2,892		2,373		2,367
Inter segment eliminations		(37	)	(31	)	(94	)	(74	)	(75	)
Total		4,262		4,007		12,188		11,108		11,467
Customer net additions		(000s)		(000s)		(000s)		(000s)		(000s)
Orange France		249		137		401		972		972
	Contract	303		161		583		824		824
	Prepay	(54	)	(24	)	(182	)	148		148
Orange UK		113		(55	)	59		673		673
	Contract	49		6		109		383		383
	Prepay	64		(61	)	(50	)	290		290
Rest of World		963		614		2,118		879		826
	Contract	240		220		620		301		235
	Prepay	723		394		1,498		578		591
Total		1,325		696		2,578		2,524		2,471

	As at 30 September
			As at 30 June 2003
	2003	2002(1)(2)(a)
	(in thousands)
	(unaudited)	(unaudited)	(unaudited)
Customer base
Orange France	19,617	18,795	19,368
Orange UK	13,371	13,060	13,258
Rest of World	13,957	11,389	12,994
Total	46,945	43,244	45,620

Selected information for the nine months ended 30 September 2003 and 2002

Key business indicators for France, the UK and our other principal subsidiaries are set out below. ARPU numbers are stated on a rolling 12-month basis.

		Quarter ended		Nine months ended 30 September
		30 September 2003	30 June 2003
				2003	2002(1)(2)
					pro forma
France
Customers (in thousands) (period end)		19,617	19,368	19,617	18,795
	Contract	11,266	10,963	11,266	10,269
	Prepay	8,351	8,405	8,351	8,526
Recurring network revenues (€ in millions)		1,923	1,797	5,465	5,211
Equipment and other revenues (€ in millions)		209	145	473	405
Total revenues (€ in millions)		2,132	1,942	5,938	5,616
Annual average revenue per user (€)				377	380
	Contract			549	566
	Prepay			158	166
UK
Customers (in thousands) (period end)		13,371	13,258	13,371	13,060
	Contract	4,347	4,298	4,347	4,144
	Prepay	9,024	8,960	9,024	8,916
Recurring network revenues (€ in millions)		1,335	1,295	3,925	3,598
Equipment and other revenues (€ in millions)		142	128	404	413
Total revenues (€ in millions)		1,477	1,423	4,329	4,011
Annual average revenue per user (£)				270	255
	Contract			572	551
	Prepay			127	124

Selected information for the nine months ended 30 September 2003 and 2002

	Quarter ended		Nine months ended 30 September
	30 September 2003	30 June 2003	2003	2002(1)(2)
				pro forma (other than ARPU)(12)
Rest of World data
Belgium—Mobistar
Customers (in thousands) (period end)	2,508	2,418	2,508	2,220
Total revenues (€ in millions)	302	282	849	740
Annual average revenue per user (€)			411	399
Denmark—Orange
Customers (in thousands) (period end)(10)	585	546	585	574
Total revenues (€ in millions)	68	68	195	177
Annual average revenue per user (€)			376	281
Egypt—MobiNil (at 71.25%)
Customers (in thousands) (period end)	1,984	1,826	1,984	1,519
Total revenues (€ in millions)	103	84	280	222
Annual average revenue per user (€)			208	291
The Netherlands—Orange
Customers (in thousands) (period end)	1,144	1,057	1,144	1,027
Total revenues (€ in millions)	124	113	343	296
Annual average revenue per user (€)			397	313
Romania—Orange
Customers (in thousands) (period end)	2,905	2,590	2,905	2,020
Total revenues (€ in millions)	130	109	336	241
Annual average revenue per user (€)			170	218
Slovakia—Orange
Customers (in thousands) (period end)	1,979	1,852	1,979	1,615
Total revenues (€ in millions)	100	94	285	235
Annual average revenue per user (€)			197	202
Switzerland—Orange
Customers (in thousands) (period end)(11)	1,055	1,003	1,055	1,040
Total revenues (€ in millions)	216	192	600	494
Annual average revenue per user (€)			717	628
Other Countries
Customers (in thousands) (period end)	1,797	1,702	1,797	1,374
Total revenues (€ in millions)	109	99	307	236
Total Rest of World
Customers (in thousands) (period end)	13,957	12,994	13,957	11,389
Total revenues (€ in millions)	1,152	1,041	3,195	2,641

Notes

For illustrative purposes, in order to permit a more meaningful comparison against our performance in Q3 2003, pro forma Q3 2002 financial and operating data is presented;

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" about Orange. Such statements are not historical facts and include expressions about management's confidence and strategies and management's expectations about new and existing programs, technology and market conditions. Although Orange believes its expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, these forward looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties. These statements may not be regarded as a representation that anticipated events will occur or that expected objectives will be achieved. Important factors that could cause actual results or performance to differ materially from the results anticipated in these forward looking statements include, among other things, the success of the announcement of its strategic review programme (TOP), Orange's other strategic, financial and operating initiatives, changes in economic, business and competitive markets, risks and uncertainties attendant upon international operations, technological trends, wirefree telecommunications usage levels, the effect and outcome of UMTS licensing, roll-out and performance, exchange rate fluctuation and market regulatory factors. The forward-looking statements in this press release are only valid until the date of this document and Orange does not undertake to update any forward looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

This press release is not an offer to sell securities or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities, nor shall there be any offer or sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.

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ORANGE BOARD TO APPOINT SANJIV AHUJA AS DIRECTOR
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