Dutch actress Sylvia Kristel, who starred in the 1974 erotic French film Emmanuelle, has died aged 60, BBC News reported.

"She died during the night during her sleep," her agent Marieke Verharen said.

The actress, who had cancer, was admitted to hospital in July after suffering a stroke.

Emmanuelle, which told the story of a sexually promiscuous housewife, spawned numerous sequels and played in a cinema on the Champs-Elysees for 11 years. Released in 1974, the soft-focus French film was one of the first erotic movies to be shown in mainstream cinemas.

Kristel herself attributed its success to the changing censorship laws of the era.

"In a lot of countries the light went on, and that contributed very much to the success," she said.

In the UK, however, the film was given the restricted X-rating, and suffered heavy cuts.

Kristel went on to star in several Emmanuelle sequels, as well as more mainstream films - many of which, like Lady Chatterly's Lover and Mata Hari, played on her reputation as an erotic film star.