Jane Birkin, actress, singer and style icon, dies at 76 in Paris
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British singer and actress Jane Birkin at the 74th Cannes Film Festival in 2021.
PHOTO: AFP
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PARIS – Jane Birkin, the Britain-born singer and actress who became a style icon in her adopted home France, has died, a source close to her said on Sunday. She was 76.
Birkin had been suffering from health problems in recent years that had forced her to cancel concerts.
The cause of her death was not immediately known. According to a police source, a nursing assistant found Birkin dead at her Paris home on Sunday.
With no suspicious elements found on her body or in the apartment, no investigation was to be opened, the source added.
Birkin catapulted to fame through her turbulent relationship with legendary singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg and her heavily accented French, which became one of her signatures in France.
With her flared jeans, mini dresses and distinctive fringe, she was the ultimate It girl in the 1970s.
Once photographed in a dress that appeared transparent under the camera flashes, she said: “If I had known, I wouldn’t have worn underwear.”
In 1984, luxury design house Hermes named one of its handbags after her, following her complaint to a former chief executive that she could not find a leather bag which could fit all she needed as a young mother.
The Birkin became an eye-wateringly expensive and sought-after status symbol.
In a statement, the label hailed Birkin as “a dear and intimate friend” who was endowed with a great humanity.
Hermes named its Birkin bags after the actress in 1984.
PHOTO: ST FILE
French President Emmanuel Macron called Birkin a complete artiste who “sang the most beautiful words in our language”.
Singer Etienne Daho, one of her close friends, wrote on Instagram: “Unimaginable to live in a world without your light in it.”
French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne hailed Birkin as an unforgettable icon who “with her music and her talent transcended generations”.
Outside the Paris house Birkin once shared with Gainsbourg, artist and embroiderer Jenny Hunt said: “There was something about her that touched the French spirit. It’s very hard to articulate, but you feel it when you see it.”
Turbulent love
Born in London, Birkin crossed the English Channel in 1968 at the age of 22 to star in a film with 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 for their bohemian lifestyle and work.
Jane Birkin with French singer Serge Gainsbourg in September 1970.
PHOTO: AFP
Birkin, with her soft voice and androgynous silhouette, quickly became a sex symbol, recording a steamy duo with Gainsbourg in 1969, Je T’aime... Moi Non Plus (I Love You... Me Neither).
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.
“Paris became my home. I’ve been adopted here. They like my accent,” she said.
Style icon
The daughter of an actor and a naval officer, Birkin first 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.
Jane Birkin was the ultimate It girl in the 1970s.
PHOTO: AFP
The musical and romantic relationship between Gainsbourg and Birkin was famously tempestuous, and the two often had raging rows.
She blazed her own trail after walking out on Gainsbourg in 1980.
In her around 70 films, she worked with leading directors such as Bertrand Tavernier, Jean-Luc Godard and Alain Resnais.
But she remained 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 life was marked by tragedy and obstacles.
Her oldest daughter, Kate Barry, a photographer, died in an apparent suicide in 2013.
Birkin fought leukaemia in the late 1990s and in 2021 suffered a minor stroke.
She is survived by her daughter with Gainsbourg, Charlotte, and another daughter, singer Lou Doillon, from a 13-year relationship with French director Jacques Doillon. AFP
