Charlotte Rampling was born in Sturmer, England in 1946. The daughter of a British Colonel who became a NATO commander and a painter, she was educated at Jeanne d'Arc Académie pour Jeunes Filles in Versailles, France and at the exclusive St. Hilda's school in Bushley, England. She was a model before entering films in Richard Lester's The Knack... and How to Get It, followed by roles in Georgy Girl and Luchino Visconti's The Damned. Rampling is best known for her role in Liliana Cavani's The Night Porter, where she played a concentration camp survivor who is reunited with the Nazi guard (Dirk Bogarde) who tortured her throughout her captivity. In 1974, she co-starred with Sean Connery in John Boorman's science fiction adventure Zardoz, with Robert Mitchum in Farewell, My Lovely, with Woody Allen in his Stardust Memories, and with Paul Newman in Sidney Lumet's The Verdict. An actress always willing to take on bold and meaningful roles, Rampling had perhaps the most off-beat one in Nagisa Oshima's 1986 comedy Max mon amour as Margaret, a woman in love with a chimpanzee. She also voices video games, such as The Ring.
Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#97). [1995] She was awarded an O.B.E. (Officer of the order of the British Empire) by the Queen (2000). Festival tribute at the Créteil International Women's Film Festival, France. [1995] Mother of television director Barnaby Southcombe with Bryan Southcombe and of magician David Jarre with Jean-Michel Jarre. Stepmother to Emily Jarre. The British rock band Kinky Machine wrote a song about her, simply called "Charlotte Rampling." It includes the line "I always wanted to be your trampoline". Was included as one of People Magazines 50 Most Beautiful People in May 2001. Winner of a Honorary Cesar from the French Academy of Cinema in recognition of her work (2001). Has a house in Paris and another in Chelsea. The character she played in François Ozon's _Swimming Pool_ (2003) , Sarah Morton, was named after her elder sister, Sarah, who committed suicide at age 23. She told The Guardian, "I thought that after such a very long time of not letting her be with me that I would like to bring her back into my life." Studied at Jeanne d'Arc Académie Pour Jeunes Filles at Versailles, France when her family moved there. Invited to join AMPAS in 2005. Member of jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1976. In the Extras section of the 2-disc-set Miramax release of The Beatles' A Hard Day's Night, actor Jeremy Lloyd, who makes an uncredited appearance in the film's dance scene, claims that Rampling, his then-girlfriend, is also present in the dance scene. Head of jury at the 2006 Berlin International Film Festival. Her father Godfrey, a swimmer, won a gold medal in the 4x400m relay at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Member of the jury at the Venice Film Festival in 1997. After attending Jeanne d'Arc Academie pour Jeunes Filles in Versailles, France and St. Hilda's School in Bushey, England, she worked as a model, but shortly after decided to study acting at The Royal Court in London. Daughter of Anne Isabelle Rampling and Godfrey Lionel Rampling. Has a son with Bryan Southcombe named Barnaby Southcombe, born on September 1972. Has been engaged to Jean-Noel Tassez, a French business consultant since 1998. Her sister Sarah shot herself in Argentina after giving birth prematurely (1966). Is immortalized in Kinky Machine's song "Charlotte Rampling". Became a Knight of France's Legion d'Honneur in 2002. Has supported Nicolas Sarkozy's 2007 presidential campaign.