Brigitte Bardot inheritance row deepens after private letter to partner leaked

A row over the inheritance of late screen legend Brigitte Bardot has intensified after a private letter was made public which appears to show her cutting off relations with her last partner.

Dated November 2022 – three years before she died at her home in Saint Tropez – the hand-written note accuses Bernard de Chiara, her companion of more than 30 years, of "patiently destroying me day after day".

The leaked letter is a useful weapon for the other side in the Bardot legacy battle - the animal rights foundation that bears her name - which is accused by de Chiara of rushing to dispose of her estate without regard for friends and intimates.