Brigitte Bardot, the French actor and singer who became an international sex symbol before turning her back on the film industry to become an animal rights activist, has died aged 91. Brigitte Bardot as Jill in MGM's 1962 film A Very Private Affair, directed by Louis Malle. Her primary focus became animal protection activism, joining protests against seal hunts in 1977 and establishing the Brigitte Bardot Foundation in 1986. Brigitte Bardot pictured during a TV show at the north Paris animal shelter of Gennevilliers in 1994. Jordan Bardella, the president of Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally party (RN), which Bardot supported, wrote: “Brigitte Bardot was a woman of heart, conviction and character.

Source: The Irish Times December 28, 2025 10:09 UTC