Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg (French: [ʃaʁlɔt ɡɛ̃zbuʁ] (listen); born 21 July 1971) is a British-French actress and singer. She is the daughter of English actress Jane Birkin and French musician Serge Gainsbourg. After making her musical debut with her father on the song "Lemon Incest" at the age of 12, she released an album with her father at the age of 15. More than 20 years passed before Gainsbourg released albums as an adult (5:55, IRM, Stage Whisper and Rest) to commercial and critical success. She has also appeared in many films, including the "Depression" trilogy directed by Lars von Trier, and has received a César Award and the Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Award.
Background :
Gainsbourg with her mother Jane Birkin in 2010
Gainsbourg was born on 21 July 1971 in the Marylebone area of Central London to English actress and singer Jane Birkin and French musician Serge Gainsbourg. Gainsbourg was born at the height of her parents' fame; they had made headlines several years earlier with the sexually explicit song "Je t'aime... moi non plus" and by that point had become notorious for their turbulent relationship and multiple artistic collaborations. As a result, her birth and childhood were well publicised.
At birth, she received the surname of Gainsbourg, her father's stage name, but at the age of 18 she changed her surname to Ginsburg, her father's legal surname. She has continued to use the Gainsbourg name professionally.
Her maternal grandmother was actress Judy Campbell, and her uncle is screenwriter Andrew Birkin, who directed her in The Cement Garden. She is a cousin of theatre and opera director Sophie Hunter. Gainsbourg's father was Jewish, whereas her mother is from a Protestant background.Gainsbourg attended École Active Bilingue Jeannine Manuel in Paris and Collège Alpin International Beau Soleil in Switzerland. French is Gainsbourg's first language, but she is also fluent in English.
Gainsbourg was raised in Paris alongside her half-sister, Kate Barry, from her mother's marriage to composer John Barry. Kate Barry died in 2013 after falling out of a window. According to Birkin, both parents were somewhat neglectful, often spending their nights going out to parties and drinking. She has a young brother, Lucien "Lulu" Gainsbourg, born in 1986 from her father's relationship with Bambou. On her father's side she also had two older siblings born from his second marriage to Françoise-Antoinette "Béatrice" Pancrazzi.
By 1980, her parents' relationship had dissolved and her mother left her father for the director Jacques Doillon. Her half-sister, Lou Doillon, was born in 1982 as a result of the union. Gainsbourg would go on to work with her stepfather in the film The Temptation of Isabelle in 1985 and later in Amoureuse in 1992, which also starred her future partner Yvan Attal.
In 1987, she was the target of a bungled kidnapping.
After her parents separated, Gainsbourg's father descended into alcoholism, eventually dying of a heart attack in 1991. Gainsbourg remained devoted to preserving his legacy and preserved his home, saying she hoped to eventually turn it into a museum. She eventually abandoned the project and decided to maintain the house as a private residence instead.
