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CULTURE

Jane Birkin, British-French celebrity and style icon, dies at 76

Jane Birkin, the British-born singer and actress who became a style icon in her adopted France, has died, a close source said on Sunday. She was 76.

Jane Birkin
British singer and actress Jane Birkin poses during a photocall for the film "Jane par Charlotte" (Jane By Charlotte) at the 74th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on July 8th, 2021. Jane Birkin died, it was announced on July 16th, 2023. Photo by: Valery HACHE / AFP

Birkin had been suffering from health problems in recent years that had forced her to cancel concerts.

The cause of death and other details were not immediately available.

Birkin catapulted to fame through her turbulent relationship with legendary singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg and her heavily accented French.

With her flared jeans, mini dresses and messy bangs, Birkin was a fashion icon in the 1970s.

In 1984, Hermes named one of its handbags after her, which remains a sought-after status symbol.

Turbulent love affair

She crossed the Channel in 1968 at the age of 22 to star in a film alongside Gainsbourg, who was 18 years her senior.

It was the start of a 13-year relationship that made them France’s most famous couple, in the spotlight as much for their bohemian and hedonistic lifestyle as for their work.

Birkin, with her soft voice and androgynous silhouette, quickly became a sex symbol, recording a steamy duo with a growling Gainsbourg in 1969, “Je t’aime… moi non plus”.

Banned on radio in several countries and condemned by the Vatican, the song was a worldwide success.

“He and I became the most famous of couples in that strange way because of ‘Je t’aime’ and because we stuck together for 13 years and he went on being my friend until the day he died. Who could ask for more?” Birkin told CNN in 2006.

“So Paris became my home. I’ve been adopted here. They like my accent,” she said.

Style icon

The daughter of an actress and a naval officer, Birkin married James Bond composer John Barry, with whom she had a daughter, Kate. The marriage lasted three years.

She moved to France after meeting Gainsbourg on the set of a romantic comedy in which he was her co-star.

They had a daughter, Charlotte, who became a hugely successful actress and singer.

The musical and romantic relationship between Gainsbourg and Birkin was famously tempestuous.

During one of their raging rows, Birkin tossed herself into the River Seine after throwing a custard pie in Gainsbourg’s face.

She blazed her own trail after walking out on France’s favourite bad boy in 1980.

In her around 70 films she has worked with leading French directors including Bertrand Tavernier, Jean-Luc Godard, Alain Resnais, James Ivory and Agnes Varda.

But she remained forever associated with Gainsbourg, who continued to write songs for her after their split, including “Les dessous chics” about lingerie being used to try to cover up a relationship on the rocks.

“It’s the most beautiful song about separation you could ever have,” Birkin told AFP in a 2018 interview.

Her oldest daughter, Kate Barry, a photographer, died in an apparent suicide in 2013.

Birkin is survived by her daughter with Gainsbourg, Charlotte, and her daughter Lou Doillon, a singer, whom she had during a 13-year relationship with French director Jacques Doillon.

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CRIME

French cinema boss on trial for sexual assault

The head of France's top cinema institution Dominique Boutonnat denied sexually assaulting his godson as he went on trial Friday in a case that has led to calls for him to step down.

French cinema boss on trial for sexual assault

The trial comes as French cinema reels from a renewed #MeToo reckoning that has seen several big names, including acting legend Gerard Depardieu, accused of sexual abuse.

READ ALSO: French actor Gérard Depardieu to be tried for sexual assault in October

Activists have denounced Boutonnat’s continued leadership of the National Centre of Cinema (CNC), whose role includes overseeing measures to curb sexual violence in the industry.

His godson accuses him of trying to masturbate him during a holiday in Greece in 2020 when he was 19.

“I looked at him to find my godfather and that’s when I saw someone completely different… It was someone using me to masturbate,” the godson, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told the court.

Boutonnat responded in court that it was his godson who had initiated the situation and kissed him.

“I feel bad about leaving an ambiguous situation, but to say there was a sexual assault is false,” he told the court.

He was placed under investigation in February 2021 but still reappointed by the government as head of the CNC in July 2022.

Training to prevent abuse has in recent months become obligatory for films seeking public funding via the CNC.

The CNC told AFP that the case against Boutonnat came from “the private sphere” and had no relation to its activities.

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