Iconic singer-actress dies at 76: Take a look back at the best photos from early in her career
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Singer-actress Jane Birkin passed away at 76 on July 16, 2023. And on July 24, stars including actress Catherine Deneuve, singer-actress Vanessa Paradis and France’s first lady, Brigitte Macron, descended upon Paris’s Church of Saint-Roch for the funeral in which Jane’s daughters, Charlotte Gainsbourg and Lou Doillon, carried their mother’s coffin into the service.
Jane — seen here in a stunning portrait taken in 1969 — made a name for herself during that decade, starting in film before moving on to music.
The beauty was also renowned for inspiring the legendary Hermes Birkin bag after sitting next to the fashion house’s chief executive, Jean-Louis Dumas, in the ’80s and remarking on the need for a good leather weekend bag.
Keep reading to see more photos…
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Jane Birkin wore a beaded gown as she posed for a portrait in Paris in November 1968.
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Jane Birkin was a natural beauty in this portrait snapped in the ’60s — the decade she came to fame.
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Jane Birkin began a 12-year relationship with French musician and actor Serge Gainsbourg in 1968 after meeting him on the set of “Slogan.” The two, seen here posing a year later with Jane in a tied-up white T-shirt and matching trousers, welcomed a daughter together, Charlotte Gainsbourg, in 1971.
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Jane Birkin flashed a shy smile to the camera while wearing a black coat in 1969.
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Pretty in pink! Jane Birkin wore a bubblegum pink look and rocked her signature bangs during a photoshoot in her home base of Paris back in 1973. Though she was born in London in 1946, she resided mainly in the French city starting in the ’60s.
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Jane Birkin nibbled on a lollipop in this portrait snapped in September 1964 when she was 17.
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Jane Birkin posed atop an inflatable chair while rocking a sequined minidress during a photoshoot in 1969.
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Jane Birkin was in bloom when she stopped by “Armchair Theatre” in 1967.
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Jane Birkin was certainly the most beautiful party guest in the building at this 1978 event in Paris that she attended with then-partner Serge Gainsbourg.
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Jane Birkin smiled sweetly while holding her first child, daughter Kate Barry (whom she shared with her first husband, composer John Barry) back in 1969. Kate, who grew up to be a fashion photographer, died in 2013 in a fall from her Paris apartment.
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Jane Birkin looked like a model in a one-shouldered sequined gown during a television musical performance in 1980.
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Those diamonds! The feathers! Jane Birkin donned diamond drop earrings and a diamond necklace that nearly rivaled her stunning beauty in this 1973 snapshot.
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Care for an apple? Jane Birkin even made shopping at an outdoor market in London look chic in this beautiful black-and-white photo from 1977.
MORE: Follow Wonderwall on MSN for more fun celebrity & entertainment photo galleries and content
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She even looks gorgeous in a helmet! Jane Birkin while rocking a blue motorcycle helmet in the ’60s.
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Jane Birkin posed for this phenomenal photograph, her hair blowing in the wind, while dining alfresco in 1977.
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All matching in black! Jane Birkin held her older daughter, Kate Barry, while posing for a photo alongside then-boyfriend Serge Gainsbourg in 1969.
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Jane Birkin’s captivating beauty was on full display in this photograph from a shoot in 1969.
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A beauty barefoot in blue jeans, Jane Birkin flashed a smile while posing in a gaming room in December 1974.
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Sporting an outfit that’s still in style today — a cute ruffled white top, bootcut jeans and red heeled sandals — Jane Birkin posed next to some flowers in 1974.
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Jane Birkin posed for this phenomenal photograph, her hair blowing in the wind, while dining alfresco in 1977.
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Jane Birkin wore some dramatic eyeliner in this still from 1965’s “The Knack,” her very first film.
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Jane Birkin and then-partner Serge Gainsbourg posed for a family photo while on holiday in St-Tropez in 1972. Jane held their daughter, Charlotte, while her daughter from a previous relationship, Kate Barry, sat with Serge.
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Jane Birkin posed with her elbows on the table while sitting with Serge Gainsbourg during the 1974 Cannes Film Festival.
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With her eyes matching the sky, Jane Birkin posed for a stunning close-up in the ’60s.
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Jane Birkin donned a beautifully embellished gown — complete with cut-outs that would be on-trend today — at the premiere of her film “Wonderwall” in 1968.
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Airline travel never looked so chic! Jane Birkin was photographed at London Airport in 1966 clutching a basket and coat as she strutted through the terminal.
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Jane Birkin took a break to flash a smile in Brighton, England, in 1975 while wearing a dress and heels on the pier.
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A fresh-faced 20-year-old Jane Birkin showed off a smile while posing by a ladder in 1967 following news she’d landed a role in the film “Wonderwall.”
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