Beiruting News

Hollywood star Jodie Foster has married her girlfriend Alexandra Hedison, the Oscar-winning actor's publicist has confirmed.

The news that Foster, 51, and Hedison, 44, a photographer and also an actor, was first reported by E! television. It said they had been dating since last summer and quoted sources as saying previously that the couple were "totally in love".

The deeply private Foster only came out publicly in a rambling, heartfelt speech at the 2013 Golden Globe Awards, where she accepted a lifetime achievement award.

"I hope that you're not disappointed that there won't be a big coming-out speech tonight, because I already did my coming-out about a thousand years ago back in the Stone Age," she said in the speech.

She added that there seemed to be a demand for celebrities to reveal they are gay "with a press conference, a fragrance and a prime-time reality show".