Edith Piaf (1915-1963) was a French singer and one of her country’s best-known cultural icons. She is probably France’s greatest ever singer and sang classics such as ‘La vie en rose’. She was so popular that 100,000 people attended her funeral in Paris and traffic came to a standstill. There is a museum in Paris dedicated to her memory.

 

She was born Edith Gassion in a poor suburb of Paris. Piaf’s parents abandoned her when she was a child and she lived with her grandmother. When she was 14, she teamed up with her acrobat father. She toured France with him and sang in public for the first time. Aged 16, she went her own way and became a street singer.

 

In 1935, Piaf was discovered by a nightclub owner, who asked her to sing in his club. He gave her the nickname Little Sparrow because she was so small. She was an instant success and began to mix with the rich and famous of Paris. During World War II, she frequently performed for German officers and many considered her a traitor.

 

Piaf became famous worldwide after the war. However, her personal life hit many low points. Her lover died in a plane crash in 1949 and in the 1950s she had three near-fatal car crashes and became addicted to morphine and alcohol. In 1961, she recorded her famous song "Non, je ne regrette rien". It was one of the last songs she sang.