The French right has urged the government to organize a national tribute to legendary film star Brigitte Bardot
Éric Ciotti, a prominent figure on France’s right, has proposed a national honor for film icon Brigitte Bardot, sparking objections from political opponents on the left.
“It is France’s duty to honor its Marianne,” Ciotti said, referring to the symbol of French liberty, whose face was chosen in the 1960s to be depicted by Bardot.
Bardot died on Sunday at the age of 91. A petition launched by Ciotti has since garnered more than 23,000 signatures and has received support from some far-right figures.
However, Socialist leader Olivier Faure pointed out that national tributes are reserved for “exceptional services to the nation.” Faure argued that while Bardot was an iconic actress, she had “turned her back on republican values.”
President Emmanuel Macron has called Bardot a “legend of the century” who lived a life of freedom, and Ciotti, who leads the right-wing UDR party, has appealed to him to organize a national send-off.
Ciotti said that France should recognize the woman who brought so much international recognition to her country and actively contributed to the fight for women’s liberation and abortion rights.
Meanwhile, the mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, has announced that his city will name an “iconic site” in Bardot’s honor.
But Bardot is destined to remain controversial in death, as she was during her lifetime. Faure said she was convicted five times of inciting racial hatred.
After starring in “And God Created Woman” in 1956, Bardot starred in nearly 50 films.
She then left the world of cinema in 1973 to devote herself to animal welfare and lived for decades at her home, La Madrague, in Saint-Tropez on the French Riviera.
But she became as well known for her love of animals as she was for her far-right sympathies. Some of her comments targeted Muslims, and others insulted the people of the French Indian Ocean island of Réunion.
“To be saddened by the plight of dolphins and yet remain indifferent to the deaths of migrants in the Mediterranean – how blasphemous is that?” Green MP Sandrine Rousseau asked on social media.
There are different types of national tributes in France. Robert Badinter, who abolished the death penalty in France, was honored with a national tribute in the form of a solemn ceremony in 2024, as was the singer Charles Aznavour in 2018.
A more likely option for Bardot would be something similar to the public farewell given to rock star Johnny Hallyday, when large crowds gathered on the streets of Paris in 2017.
Not everyone on the left is against the idea of a national tribute for Bardot. Socialist MP Philippe Brun told French radio, “Why not? We’ve done it for other people, notably Johnny Hallyday.” “If the President of the Republic decides on this, I don’t think we should oppose it.”
Bardot herself has stayed out of the spotlight for decades, and her close friend Wendy Bouchard said she had no interest in medals or ceremonies.
“Perhaps it’s a good thing,” she told French television, “but I’m not sure that she, who lived a life of simplicity and austerity, would want this national honor.”
Journalist Steven Bellery, who interviewed Bardot earlier this year, agreed that she would prefer something simpler and more intimate.
Bardot had requested to be buried at her Riviera home in La Madrague rather than in a public cemetery, where she feared “crowds of idiots could desecrate the graves of my parents and grandparents.”
However, the Saint-Tropez town hall has announced that he will be buried privately in the municipal cemetery, which overlooks his home and the Mediterranean Sea.
The Brigitte Bardot Foundation, which works for animal welfare, says his funeral will take place on January 7th at the Notre-Dame de l’Assomption church and will be broadcast on screens throughout the town.
