French pop icon and actor Françoise Hardy has died, aged 80

French singer-songwriter, actor and model Françoise Hardy has died at the age of 80.

Her death was announced on Tuesday (June 11) by her son and musician Thomas Dutronc on social media. Dutronc wrote captioning a photo of himself as a baby with his mother, “Maman est partie,” which translates to “mom is gone”.

While a cause of death has yet to be confirmed, Hardy revealed in June 2021 that she had been diagnosed with laryngeal cancer in 2018, following a lymphoma diagnosis in 2004, and said she felt “close to the end” of her life.

As a musician, François Hardy broke out with the 1962 hit ‘Tous les garçons et les filles’, which topped the singles charts in her homeland of Paris and several other countries. The following year, she clinched her second hit ‘C’est à l’amour auquel je pense’.

Besides French, Hardy also performed in English, German and Italian. François enjoyed her biggest English-language hit in 1968 with ‘It Hurts to Say Goodbye’, which went to No. 1 in the UK, as well as France. She also drew the admiration of many fans and musicians globally, including Bob Dylan, who wrote a poem for her on the back of his ‘Another Side of Bob Dylan’ album in 1964.

Besides music, Hardy also had a career in acting and modelling between 1963 and 1976. Some of her biggest roles include What’s New Pussycat?, Château en Suède, Grand Prix and Monte Carlo: C’est La Rose.

She also authored several fiction and non-fiction books and had a side career in astrology.

Following the news of her death, David Hallyday – the son of famed French singer Johnny Hallyday – who wrote in French, offering his condolences to Thomas Dutronc: “Thomas, at this inconsolable moment, I am sending you all the love and courage possible.”