Why Jane No Longer Carries A Birkin

The Hermes Birkin bag is one of the most famous fashion designs of the 20th Century but - despite thousands of women coveting the bag made exclusively for Jane Birkin in 1984, rare versions of which retail for up to £200,000 - its namesake has revealed that it no longer suits her needs due to it capaciousness.

"I fill my bag with junk... and half the furniture from my house, it's a very, very heavy bag," Birkin told the BBC of the limitations that the carryall poses, revealing that she prefers to keep things fuss free. "Now I fill my pockets like a man, because then you don't actually have to carry anything."

Birkin's comments come two years after the French singer and fashion muse asked the brand to remove her name from the bag, after she said she was "alerted to the cruel practices endured by crocodiles during their slaughter for the production of Hermès bags carrying my name" by PETA (Protection for the Ethical Treatment of Animals).

Hermès responded to her concerns with assurances that it did not partake in the mistreatment of animals, and, "following the heartfelt emotion expressed by Jane Birkin and her request for explanation", reiterated its “firm commitment in the ethical treatment of crocodiles in its partner farms".

Despite PETA responding saying, "We believe Ms Birkin will come to realise that her good name does not belong on a bag made from the cruelly obtained skins of factory-farmed wildlife" and that Birkin had been misled, Hermès confirmed that she was satisfied with the brand's investigation and explanation, thus her name remained.