From the moment you were born, you were predicted an extraordinary destiny!
The nun who gave birth to me assured my mother of this a few minutes after my birth. I am passionate about astrology and, when I performed my astrological chart a few years ago, I realized that the planets were actually aligned in this direction.
Your first nude photo was when you were very young, correct?
I owe it to my brother who took it from the attic of our house. It came naturally without this posing the slightest problem of modesty.
Originally, you didn’t want to be an actress, but a model…
It was my teenage dream. But every time I showed up at an agency, I was criticized for having too much chest. One day, I discovered a small ad in the daily “France Soir” from a producer looking for a model with large breasts. I introduced myself, I was accepted, but I didn’t know at the time that I was going to star in an something natural. This is how I started in cinema.
Your young career was also marked by photos published in “Lui” magazine!
I met a famous photographer, Francis Giacobetti, at a libertine party. He offered me a report whose publication was an event. I became the “X actress of the moment”.
You became popular thanks to Bernard Pivot, didn’t you?
In 1987, I published a book, “Me the scandalous” and I suggested to my press officer to send it to the presenter of “Apostrophes” because he likes to receive from time to time slightly unusual characters. He answers me: “But you’re dreaming, my little one!” » Without anyone intervening, Pivot asked to invite me. The day after the broadcast, bookstores were asking for the book by the young blonde woman who appeared in “Apostrophes”. Sales have exceeded 100,000 copies!
In the mid-80s, you still appeared in a few erotic films but, at the same time, you began a professional reconversion by accepting short appearances in more “mainstream” feature films…
In order not to mix genres, I chose to be credited in the credits under the name Brigitte Simonin. My most vivid memory is the role of a nurse in “For the Skin of a Cop”. I found myself facing Alain Delon. He was my childhood idol, but I was so intimidated that I didn’t know what to say to him. He invited me to Douchy, but I refused and ran away. I still regret it today.
At the end of the 90s, you made a 180° turn by participating in a revue of singers at the Théâtre des Deux-Ânes. Tell us!
I had decided to retire from acting in porn films, which is a tiring job even if you spend your time lying down. I then experienced a journey through the desert which lasted four years. I took theater classes and played a “one-on-one” in a tiny theater near Les Halles. Jacques Mailhot, the director of Deux-Ânes, came to see me and asked me to join his troupe. This is how I participated with Jean Roucas, Jean Amadou and a few others in a magazine called “Petit Papa Lionel”. Lionel Jospin, candidate of the Socialists, had won the legislative elections and Jacques Chirac, the President of the Republic, was forced to appoint him Prime Minister. It wasn’t easy for me, because I had to constantly go towards the audience to make them laugh, even though I’m more of an introvert.
For five years, you had a love affair with René Château, who recently passed away. He worked for a long time with Jean-Paul Belmondo before becoming “the memory of French cinema”, restoring sometimes very old films…
He supported me when I decided to reclaim my true identity by helping me come to terms with this dark past that was regularly thrown in my face. It was thanks to him that I was hired in a few films, despite the producers’ initial reluctance. He was passionate about cinema. On Wednesday, the day the films were released, we sometimes went to see three in a row.
Horses have also been part of your life…
The turning point came when I saw “The Man Who Whispered in the Ear of Horses” on television. I was fascinated by Robert Redford. A few years later, I found myself next to him during a screening in Cannes. I didn’t dare talk to him! I moved to the countryside where I lived among several horses, competing in show jumping competitions. I’ve won some, but I’ve also had falls that left me with a few fractures. One of them particularly scared me. I almost crashed into a big rock. My body having instinctively deviated, I fell on my hands, which broke both my forearms. I spent six weeks in a cast and then replaced horseback riding with walking with my Great Danes. I once fell in love with one of these dogs and have had many since.
You assure that spirituality and meditation have helped you become the woman you are today. For what ?
