I have recently bought a new computer in France and as you would expect I am running on a French version of XP. Is it possible to convert to English.

Nope. You'll need to buy the proper version of the OS. Soylent Green is PEOPLE!!!
I'd say since you apparently already know a little French, since you were there, your best bet would be to take a French class (or two) and become fluent. That way you won’t waste any money on a new OS and you’ll become bilingual at the same time.
God bless,
Dieu vous bénisse,
PR
