Debate Rages Over Tribute to Brigitte Bardot Following Her Passing

Wed Dec 31 2025 10:11:28 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

As France grapples with Brigitte Bardot's legacy, calls for a national tribute highlight divisions among political leaders and citizens alike. Bardot, an actress turned animal rights activist, leaves behind a complex historical footprint.

In the wake of Brigitte Bardot's death at the age of 91, French right-wing politician Éric Ciotti advocates for a national tribute. While some support the idea, other political figures, like Socialist leader Olivier Faure, argue against it. Bardot's life and choices, from her cinematic fame to controversial political views, continue to elicit mixed responses across France. The debates surrounding her legacy reflect deeper societal divides.

French right-wing figure Éric Ciotti has called for a national tribute to honour film legend Brigitte Bardot, prompting objections from political opponents on the left.

France has a duty to honour its Marianne, said Ciotti, referring to the emblem of French liberty whose face Bardot was chosen to represent in the 1960s.

Bardot died on Sunday aged 91. A petition launched by Ciotti since has attracted more than 23,000 signatures, and has the backing of some allies on the far right.

But Socialist leader Olivier Faure has pointed out that national homages are for exceptional services to the nation. Bardot was an iconic actress but she also turned her back on republican values, Faure argued.

Bardot has been hailed by President Emmanuel Macron as a legend of the century who embodied a life of freedom, and Ciotti, who leads the right-wing UDR party, has appealed to him to organise a national send-off.

Ciotti said France should recognise a woman who brought her country an extraordinary level of international recognition and actively helped in the fight for women's liberty and abortion rights.

Meanwhile, the mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, has announced that his city will name an iconic site in Bardot's honour.

But Bardot is destined to remain controversial in death as she was during her life. Faure pointed out that she had been convicted five times for inciting racial hatred.

Bardot starred in some 50 films, after bursting onto the scene in And God Created Woman in 1956. She then left the world of cinema in 1973 for a life devoted to animal welfare, and lived for decades in Saint-Tropez on the French Riviera, at her home called La Madrague.

However, she became as well known for her far-right sympathies as she was for her love of animals. Some of her remarks targeted Muslims, and others insulted the people of the French Indian Ocean island of Réunion.

Journalist Steven Bellery, who interviewed Bardot earlier this year, agreed she wanted something far more simple and intimate.

Bardot had asked to be buried at her Riviera home at La Madrague, rather than in a public cemetery, where she feared a crowd of idiots might damage the graves of my parents and grandparents.

The Brigitte Bardot Foundation, dedicated to animal welfare, says her funeral will take place on 7 January at the Notre-Dame de l'Assomption church and will be broadcast on screens across the town.