Former French Culture Minister and renowned television personality Frédéric Mitterrand passed away Thursday at his Parisian home at the age of 76, after a battle that lasted several months with cancer. Born in 1947 in Paris, Mitterrand was the nephew of the late President François Mitterrand and announced in April 2023 that he was "ill," without providing further details.
A great lover of cinema, he gained fame by hosting a film program on TF1 titled "Etoiles et toiles" since 1981. He left the station in 1988 following its privatization and moved to public channel Antenne 2. Mitterrand directed several films, notable among them "Lettres d'amour en Somalie" in 1981 and the opera "Madame Butterfly" in 1995, which he filmed in Tunisia.
His memoirs in 2005 sparked widespread controversy as they discussed his sexual relationships for payment in Thailand and the Maghreb, leading to accusations of engaging with minors and promoting sexual tourism, which he denied. Despite being the nephew of former President François Mitterrand, he chose not to follow in his uncle’s footsteps, although he admired him. In June 1993, he joined the radical left movement and in May 1995, publicly supported the right-wing presidential candidate Jacques Chirac.
Former President Nicolas Sarkozy appointed him in 2008 as head of the French Cultural Institute in Italy, "Villa Medici," and he returned to Paris a few months later to assume the Ministry of Culture until the 2012 presidential elections, which the right lost.
During his tenure, Mitterrand, a father of three, oversaw several major projects, some of which were initiated before he took office, including the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations (MuCEM) in Marseille and the Paris Philharmonic Orchestra.
French President Emmanuel Macron praised the deceased on social media, describing him as a man who "lived a thousand lives, all woven together by a common thread: culture for all." Sarkozy recalled him as "a cultured and very sensitive man." Former Culture Minister Jack Lang noted, "We had a friendship that lasted more than 60 years (...). Throughout his life, he served the arts with passion, knowledge, and love. Our common loyalty to François Mitterrand united us deeply."
