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British-born Singer And Actress, Jane Birkin Dies At 76

FILE
July 16, 2023

The English-French star was known for her professional and personal relationship with the musician Serge Gainsbourg and was considered a style icon in the late 1960s and 1970s.

British-born singer and actress Jane Birkin has died at the age of 76, according to French media.

The English-French star was known for her professional and personal relationship with the musician Serge Gainsbourg and was considered a style icon in the late 1960s and 1970s.

She was born in London but found fame singing in French, and relocated there in the 1970s, the BBC reports.

French media reported that she was found dead at her home in Paris.

Her personal and artistic relationship with Gainsbourg - who died in 1991 - made her famous around the world following their international hit "Je t'aime... moi non plus".

The duet was recorded in 1968, months after they met on the set of the film Slogan.

The pair were together for 12 years but remained friends after their split, with Gainsbourg still writing songs for Birkin.

The couple had a daughter, Charlotte Gainsbourg, who is an award-winning actress and singer.

Their relationship has been frequently described as "tumultuous", and Birkin reportedly wrote in her 2020 diaries that there had been violence between the two.

But she frequently defended the man she became so closely associated with, including against charges by one singer that he was a "harasser", in an interview in the Times in 2020.

The pair split in 1981 and Birkin continued her acting and singing career, releasing albums including "Baby Alone in Babylone" in 1983 and "Amour des Feintes" in 1990.

Prior to moving to France and meeting Gainsbourg, she was married to the British composer John Barry until the late 1960s.

Birkin's acting credits included films such as the 1966 classic Blow Up, Death on the Nile (1978) and Evil Under the Sun (1982).