Service attended by singers, animal rights activists and public figures including far-right leader Marine Le Pen

Brigitte Bardot, the film star turned animal rights activist, has been laid to rest after a funeral service in Saint-Tropez attended by her favourite politician, the far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

Bardot died aged 91 at her La Madrague villa on 28 December. Her funeral was held at the Notre-Dame de l’Assomption church and broadcast on large screens across the town.

Deaths in France and Bosnia as icy conditions disrupt travel in countries including UK and the Netherlands

Six people have died as snow, ice and freezing temperatures continue to wreak havoc across parts of Europe.

Authorities in the Landes region of south-west France said three people died and 15 were injured in road accidents on Tuesday, while two more were killed in accidents in the Paris area. One driver died in hospital on Monday night after veering into the Marne River and another was killed after a collision with a heavy goods vehicle in the east of the French capital.

The community spirit of the close-knit Swiss resort where at least 40 people died in a fire is strong even as inhabitants say they feel crushed by the tragedy

Mourners have continued to bring flowers and light candles to a makeshift memorial in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana to commemorate those who lost their lives when a blaze ripped through a packed bar popular with young people celebrating the new year, killing at least 40.

“We came to light a candle,” said Sisi Boisard, a regular visitor to Crans-Montana from France for the last 20 years. “We have five children and can’t begin to imagine what these families are going through. This is a tragedy that has cut profoundly, but not just here – it’s being felt across the world.”

Collective grief hangs over Swiss resort as relatives desperately seek information about missing loved ones

The group of 15 young people had travelled from Milan to Crans-Montana, some of them crossing the border by car, others by train, to celebrate New Year’s Eve. The Swiss ski resort was well known to them, having spent summers here with their families, and a big draw was marking the new year in the bar that in recent years had become known as the place to be.

Eight from the group managed to escape the inferno that ripped through Le Constellation, killing about 40 people, while three are among the 80 who were critically injured. Two of the eldest, Marco, 20, and Gabriele, 18, had planned to join their friends in the venue – appreciated by young people for being an affordable place to party in a resort popular with celebrities and wealthy skiers – shortly after midnight but by a last-minute twist of fate decided not to.