Oh la la! Cannes bosses say 'non merci' to nudity

THROUGHOUT its 78-year history, the Cannes Film Festival has been witness to many a display of naked ambition.

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All the way back in 1953, a young Brigitte Bardot caused a scandal when she posed on the beach in the resort wearing a bikini.

A year later, 29-year-old starlet Simone Silva sent photographers tumbling into the sea when she posed topless in the arms of film legend Robert Mitchum, while in 2006 British star Sacha Baron Cohen appeared at the event in Borat's infamous lime green 'mankini' (probably the less said about that the better).

And when it comes to the red carpet at the south of France's celebration of cinema, there's usually no shortage of skin on show.