Charlotte Rampling, the iconic actress from the swinging sixties, continues to captivate at 80. She has opened up about finding new love with a mystery man more than a decade after her longtime partner’s death from cancer.
New Chapter in Paris
Now primarily based in Paris, Rampling shares her life with her cats and a wonderful companion. She describes their bond as ‘une amitié amoureuse,’ a loving friendship.
After divorcing her second husband, Jean-Michel Jarre, in 1995 following his infidelity, Rampling entered a nearly two-decade relationship with Parisian tycoon Jean-Noël Tassex. He passed away from cancer in 2015.
Rampling has two sons from her marriages: Barnaby, 54, and David, 49. She remains on friendly terms with David’s father, Jarre, despite past betrayals.
Recent Success and Hollywood Views
Rampling stars in the upcoming film Father Mother Sister Brother, which earned the Golden Lion at this year’s Venice Film Festival. The Dune actress expressed strong reservations about Hollywood’s culture.
‘I didn’t like Hollywood at all. I didn’t like the vibe,’ she stated. ‘I didn’t want to be that person, and I didn’t want to be that kind of actor. I wanted to investigate life in a different way to just getting “great” parts and wanting to get Oscars. I didn’t want to be a celebrity.’
Reflections on Life and Legacy
Contemplating her future, Rampling noted, ‘Twenty years isn’t very long. Let’s keep as healthy as possible, because that’s the main thing, and then we’ll just go for it and hope that everything follows.’
She added, ‘I feel that the rewards are actually being given to me now… I feel I deserve it. I feel I’ve worked for it.’
Revisiting 1960s Rumors
Decades ago, rumors swirled about Rampling’s unconventional living arrangement in the 1960s with her agent Bryan Southcombe and model Randall Laurence, speculated to be a ménage à trois. Long denying it as a mere flat-share, she recently confirmed the experimental nature of the relationship.
‘Well, I did have two boyfriends which was racy at the time,’ she revealed. ‘We were all very young. It was all chop and change. Quite a lot of things were experimental.’
A colonel’s daughter, Rampling maintained appearances for her conventional parents. Upon becoming pregnant with Barnaby, now a filmmaker, she married Southcombe in 1972. Asked about her choice, she said, ‘Who knows what life has to offer you? But sometimes choices have to be made and I chose Bryan because I got pregnant.’
Sources close to the late bisexual Laurence confirmed he was openly involved with both, while Rampling kept details vague.
