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Sophie Toscan du Plantier, who was murdered in West Cork in 1996. Alamy Stock Photo
West Cork
Shirley Foster, the woman who discovered Sophie Toscan du Plantier's body, has died
Shirley Foster found the French film producer’s body near her west Cork holiday home in December 1996 and became a key witness in the murder investigation.
SHIRLEY FOSTER, THE woman who discovered the body of murdered French film producer Sophie Toscan du Plantier in west Cork almost 30 years ago, has died.
She died peacefully at her home in Ballydehob on Wednesday, according to a death notice published on RIP.ie. She was in her early 90s.
On the morning of 23 December 1996, Shirley Foster was driving from her home in Toormore towards Schull when she spotted what initially appeared to be a piece of white material caught on a fence along the lane way shared with Sophie Toscan du Plantier’s holiday home.
Looking closer, she realised it was the badly beaten body of the 39-year-old Frenchwoman lying near the entrance to the property.
Foster alerted her partner, Alfie Lyons, who then contacted gardaí, triggering one of the most high-profile murder investigations in the history of the State.
Born in England, Ms Foster was a retired art teacher and had lived for many years in West Cork.
Her death notice said she will be sadly missed by her sisters Jane and Pam, her daughter Gilly, extended family and friends.
Her cremation service will take place on Saturday at the Island Crematorium in Ringaskiddy, Co Cork.
A murder that shook a country
She and Lyons, who died in 2021, became key witnesses in the investigation and both provided statements to gardaí.
Foster later gave evidence during a libel action taken by the late Ian Bailey in 2003 and was among the witnesses who met detectives as part of a garda cold case review launched in 2022.
Ian Bailey, the self-confessed chief suspect for the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier, died in 2024.
Originally from Britain, he was arrested by gardaí and questioned in relation to the murder but was never charged.
He had always denied any involvement in Toscan du Plantier’s death but was convicted of Sophie’s murder in his absence by a French court in May 2019.
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