Recommendations of the Editorial team
In the last months of her life, actress Brigitte Bardot underwent several operations to treat cancer. Das her husband Bernard d’Ormale told Paris Match.
The two procedures, together with her long-standing severe back problems, further weakened her health before her death on December 28th at the age of 91.
“In the last few months, in moments of physical suffering, she said two or three times: ‘I’ve had enough, I want to go…'” d’Ormale said. He reported that Bardot was cared for daily by nurses who “discreetly” visited her home in Saint-Tropez. He also took care of her himself.
Last moments together
“I never left her alone,” d’Ormale said. “In the morning I served her breakfast, which she loved. Like a child, she also had her afternoon snack: tea with milk and a croissant.” When Bardot died in the early hours of the morning, he was at her side. “I sat up when I heard her say ‘Pioupiou,’ that little pet name we had for each other in private, and then it was over,” he said.
“A feeling of peace and calm came over her face. And she became incredibly beautiful again, just like when she was young. You wouldn’t have believed she was 91.”
In October, Bardot released a statement on social media to refute rumors of her death. “I don’t know what idiot spread this fake news about my passing tonight, but rest assured I’m fine,” she wrote at the time. The post followed a three-week hospital stay for minor surgery and a “serious illness,” her press office previously reported.
Withdrawal from the public
Bardot rarely spoke about her health because she largely withdrew from the public eye after retiring from acting in 1973 to devote herself to animal welfare. In 2023, it was reported that Saint-Tropez emergency services attended her home after she developed breathing problems.
Bardot’s funeral took place in Saint-Tropez on the morning of January 7th.