You probably know them all. You have seen them in films or heard them on the radio. Here are 20 celebrities who have come to Lourdes in recent years. Have you already met them?

The actors who came to Lourdes

Zac Efron filming in Lourdes

In September 2018, the famous American actor Zac Efron came to film at the grotto of Lourdes for a programme broadcast on Netflix. Zac Efron became famous thanks to the musical High School Musical. He then went on to star in Baywatch: Malibu Alert, Dirty Papy and Our Worst Neighbours 1 and 2.

On social networks, the American actor posted two photos of himself in the streets of Lourdes.

Morgan Freeman at the Grotto of Lourdes

In 2018, the famous American actor Morgan Freeman was in Lourdes as part of the filming of a documentary series on religions. Indeed, an American television channel chose Lourdes to represent France.

The Hollywood star is known for her numerous roles in Seven, Driving Miss Daisy, The Dark Knight trilogy, The Escaped and Invictus. For the documentary filmed in Lourdes, Morgan Freeman plays the narrator.

Frédéric Diefenthal, En attendant un miracle

En juin 2021, l’acteur Frédéric Diefenthal est venu à Lourdes pour tourner un téléfilm aux piscines du sanctuaire de Lourdes.

In June 2021, the actor Frédéric Diefenthal came to Lourdes to shoot a TV film at the pools of the Lourdes sanctuary.

Gad Elmaleh, Producer of Bernadette de Lourdes, the musical

Gad Elmaleh came to the sanctuary of Lourdes in August 2021 to support the actors of the show "Bernadette de Lourdes" of which he is the producer.

Josiane balasko, shooting Tralala

Josiane Balasko, the French actress from Croatia, recently visited Lourdes for the shooting of the musical Tralala, which was officially released on 6 October.

Singers who came to Lourdes

Shakira

In November 2017, the famous Colombian singer Shakira also came to Lourdes. Indeed, affected by a vocal cord haemorrhage, Shakira had thought she would never be able to perform again, before coming to Lourdes.

At the age of 40, Shakira saw many doctors who told her to opt for surgery. But the singer was not really in favour. So she found several alternatives such as hypnosis and meditation. But nothing would work. Shakira then turned to divine intervention. She went to Lourdes to get holy water.

Months went by, and then little by little the singer was able to recover all her abilities and was able to return to the stage. Unfortunately, we could not find any pictures of Shakira in Lourdes.

Vianney : French Catholic singer

In July 2021, the singer Vianney, from Pau, went to Lourdes for a concert as part of the Estivales de Lourdes. He also stopped at the Massabielle grotto.

Madonna

The singer Madonna also came to Lourdes a few years ago. Having fallen in love with Lourdes at first sight, she gave her daughter the name "Lourdes".

Kendji Girac

During the pilgrimage of travellers in August 2015, the famous singer Kendji Girac went to Lourdes. He came discreetly, shaving off his beard to be less identifiable.

Grégoire

In 2019, the singer Grégoire came to the Grotto of Lourdes. He is the composer of the famous song of the musical Bernadette de Lourdes.

La Lefèvre family

The big winners of France à un incroyable Talent came to Lourdes in July 2021. As part of the Nuits de Lourdes, after Bernadette de Lourdes' recital, the Lefèvre family gave a concert at the Lourdes Sanctuary.

Political figures

Emmanuel Macron

In July 2021, the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron came to Lourdes. He is the first president of the Fifth Republic to visit the sanctuary of Lourdes. He came to see the progress of the recovery plan to support the city of Lourdes in full economic difficulties due to the Covid crisis.

Nicolas Sarkozy did visit the Massabielle grotto in Lourdes, but he was then simply the Minister of the Interior. In 2013, his successor at the Elysée François Hollande came to Lourdes just after the floods but he did not pass by the shrine.

If we go back a little further in time, François Mitterrand and Jacques Chirac also came to the Marian city to welcome the popes in office, but still no visit to the grotto.

Bruno Le Maire

The Minister for the Economy, Bruno Le Maire, came to Lourdes in August 2020 to help the Marian city financially.

The religion

Jean-Paul II

First of all, John Paul II went to Lourdes in 1983. More than 200,000 faithful came to the Hautes-Pyrénées to see this young pope.

21 years after his first visit, John Paul II returned to Lourdes physically diminished. He spoke and moved with difficulty and moved the whole world. Even today, all of Lourdes remembers his visit.

Abbé Pierre

In 1996, Abbé Pierre also visited the Lourdes Shrine.

Other famous people who came to Lourdes

Many actors, football players, politicians, reality TV actors, singers... have also come to Lourdes.
In fact, here are some of the famous people who came to visit the Virgin Mary:
Rugby player Christian Califano and rugby coach Bernard Laporte, international footballer Diego Maradona and Yohan Cabaye. There was also the actor Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, Sister Emmanuelle, Johnny Hallyday and the singer Zucchero.
Lourdes also had the opportunity to have the visit of the princely family of Monaco: Rainier III and Albert II, Caroline and Grace Kelly.
As Lourdes is world famous and has already welcomed many famous people, other public personalities will come to visit the Virgin Mary in the coming days, months and years. To be continued...

FAQ Celbrities at Lourdes

Who is Zac Efron ? Why did he go to Lourdes ?

Zac Efron is a famous American singer, known thanks to the musical High School Musical. He visited Lourdes in September 2018 as part of a filming for a programme broadcast on netflix. Read more...

How did Shakira cure her vocal cord haemorrhage ?

After numerous visits to the doctors to cure her vocal cord haemorrhage with no way out, Shakira decided to go to Lourdes to get holy water. This allowed her to regain her voice some time later and to return to the stage. Read more...

When did the singer Vianney perform in Lourdes ?

The singer Vianney, from Pau, went to Lourdes for a concert as part of the Estivales de Lourdes in July 2021. Read more...

Who is the composer of the Bernadette de Lourdes musical ?

The singer Grégoire is the composer of the famous song of the musical Bernadette de Lourdes. Read more...