Brigitte Bardot, the 1960s French cinema icon who left the silver screen behind her a half-century ago, says as her 90th birthday approaches that she now "flees humanity" in favour of "silent solitude".

Dedicating most of her time to animal rights activism through her foundation, Bardot still regularly makes headlines, including with statements of support for France's far right.

She told AFP in a telephone interview from her home in Saint-Tropez that she hopes to see a ban on eating horse meat in her home country before she dies.