Dawn French is an incredibly proud mum to daughter Billie and delighted fans on Instagram this week when she shared a very rare snapshot of her only child.
The actress shares Billie with her ex-husband Lenny Henry – the former couple were married from 1984 until 2010 – and prefers to keep her daughter out of the spotlight.
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But on Monday, Dawn reposted an image previously sent to her by Billie – a close-up of Billie's lips which have been decorated with a lipstick love heart. "Some lips I love," the 63-year-old simply wrote.
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Fans were quick to comment on the post, with a number highlighting the special bond between mother and daughter.
Dawn reposted a picture of her daughter Billie
"There's no love like a mother's love x," one remarked while a second echoed: "Daughters" along with a series of heart emojis. A third wrote: "Oh mum!....[love heart eyes]."
It's not the first time that Dawn has shared the artistic snapshot with her followers. She previously posted the image in February this year, explaining in her caption: "Daughter sent me love lips #heartburst."
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Dawn – who has been happily married to charity executive Mark Bignell since 2013 - has described her daughter as "the greatest achievement" of her life.
Lenny and Dawn adopted Billie when she was two weeks old
Former couple Lenny and Dawn adopted Billie when she was just two weeks old after a long struggle with infertility.
During an appearance on Fearne Cotton's Happy Place podcast, Dawn spoke candidly about their decision to adopt.
"I knew I wanted to definitely be a mother that was a very strong instinct," she shared. "Then what happened was my body wouldn't let me be a mother and everything kept failing all the time for all sorts of reasons. We had to make a big decision, to put aside IVF and go for adoption."
Dawn and Lenny on their wedding day in 1984
She spoke further about her bond with Billie in an interview with HELLO! in October last year. "My biggest test and my biggest joy," she said of her child. "But it is unbreakable.
"We have the same amount of mother/daughter friction that any mum and daughter have, it's no more or less. But I've learnt a lot about her. And she's learnt a lot about me."
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