‘You destroyed me’: Brigitte Bardot’s devastating letter to long-time partner

Henry SamuelWed, November 4, 2026 at 1:00 PM UTC

28

Brigitte Bardot and Bernard d’Ormale spent 30 years together, but Mr d’Ormale was cut from her will - Pascal Guyot/AFP

Brigitte Bardot said her long-time partner had “destroyed her” in a newly released letter, shining a light on their tortured relationship.

In a handwritten message, the French actress reportedly told her long-time lover Bernard d’Ormale in 2022: “You have destroyed me patiently, day after day, for 30 years.”

She writes: “I so desperately need a shoulder to lean on, some support, some tenderness, a presence that you are incapable of giving me – Checkmate!”

The leaked letter emerged as Mr d’Ormale, 85, claimed he had been barred from La Madrague, the Saint-Tropez property where the late film star lived for decades, having been cut from her will.

He is now living in an apartment provided by the Saint Tropez council.

The Brigitte Bardot Foundation, to which she left the property, said it had merely respected the actress’s wishes to rid La Madrague of all occupants, including Mr d’Ormale, within six months of her death. She died on Dec 28, 2025.

In a diatribe written in blue ink – dated Nov 17, 2022 – and published by Le Figaro this week, Bardot wrote:

Despite spending more than 30 years together, Bardot, who was married three times previously, cut Mr d’Ormale from her will and bequeathed her wealth to her son, Nicolas-Jacques Charrier, and her foundation.

Mr d’Ormale said he briefly left La Madrague at about 2pm on Saturday, Oct 24, to have a coffee in Saint-Tropez. When he returned three hours later, he found that the parking entrance had been removed and replaced by a wooden panel and that he was no longer allowed to enter.

He returned on Monday, Oct 26, after contacting the foundation in the hope of recovering identity documents, a credit card and medical prescriptions, but was again denied entry.

He was finally allowed inside the following Friday, accompanied by his lawyer and bailiffs, to retrieve some of his belongings. The wider dispute remained unresolved.

Advertisement

“It’s all rather inhumane. The foundation’s reputation is taking a hit. I don’t understand this behaviour at all,” Mr d’Ormale said on Tuesday.

“I even tried to sort this out amicably, but to no avail,” he said.

The foundation said the couple were not legally married in France. Ms Vieugué described them as cohabiting partners under French law. They had held a religious ceremony in Norway in 1992, according to reports.

Bardot and Mr d’Ormale were not legally married in France, according to reports - Chip Hires/Getty Images

Since Bardot’s death, tensions have flared between the foundation and Mr d’Ormale, a former adviser to Jean-Marie Le Pen, the late founder of the far-Right Front National.

Max Guazzini, the foundation’s president, accused Mr d’Ormale of “lying constantly” in an interview with the radio station Ici Provence.

“As a trustee, he cannot live in a property belonging to the foundation. We’ve told him this 50,000 times, but he couldn’t care less,” Mr Guazzini said.

He claimed that Bardot’s Mini Moke, her microcar, had “disappeared”. “He’s put it in a safe place, he told me.”

Bardot was an international star and French icon - Getty Images

Guyslaine Calmels-Bock, the foundation’s director, said it had blocked Mr d’Ormale’s access because he was regularly taking bags out of the property and was “in the process of emptying it”. Mr d’Ormale denies trying to clear the house.

In September, Mr d’Ormale described the foundation’s decision to auction Bardot’s personal belongings as “scandalous”.

Ms Vieugué, his lawyer, told AFP that her client did not deny the foundation now owned the property, or that a six-month deadline had been agreed to allow him to move his belongings. But she said he had been unable to move out on time because he “is overwhelmed by the situation”.

“At 85 years of age, having lived there for 35 years, with just his little car and having to pack everything up on his own, it’s simply not possible,” she said.

Try full access to The Telegraph free today. Unlock their award-winning website and essential news app, plus useful tools and expert guides for your money, health and holidays.

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”