Amel Baccouche

Amel Baccouche was born on 14 March 1949 in Bab Souika, a historic quarter of Tunis, into a family of artists. She first performed in school theatre and went on to train in dramatic arts.

Before acting became her profession she worked in the health sector. She left that job to follow her passion for the stage and joined the theatre troupe of Le Kef, in north-western Tunisia, with which she performed many roles.

Baccouche built her craft in the theatre before becoming a familiar face on Tunisian television. Her screen credits include El Douar (1992), directed by Abdelkader Jerbi, in which she played Om Elatti; the first season of El Khottab Al Bab (1996), where she appeared as Hadja Saida in several episodes; Dhafayer (2001) by Habib Mselmani; Gamret Sidi Mahrous (2002) by Slaheddine Essid, as Zneikha Mahrous; Ikhwa wa Zaman (2003) by Hamadi Arafa; and Hssabet w Aqabet (2004) by Habib Mselmani, as Tawes. IMDb also lists the 1992 film Bezness among her credits.

Her best known role came in Choufli Hal, the sitcom created by Slaheddine Essid and Abdelkader Jerbi and broadcast from 2005 to 2009. As Jannet, the fortune teller, she played opposite Kamel Touati, Mouna Noureddine, Sofiène Chaâri, Kaouther Belhaj, Jamila Chihi and Oumayma Ben Hafsia, and the character became one of the most remembered in Tunisian television comedy.

She went on to appear in Pour les beaux yeux de Catherine (2012) by Hamadi Arafa, as Mné; Yawmiyat Imraa (2013), as Baya; Lemnara (2017) by Atef Ben Hassine; Elli Lik Lik (2018) by Kaïs Chekir; and the fifth season of Sami Fehri's Awled Moufida (2020). She also worked in radio drama, and for many years she taught theatre education.

Baccouche came from a family of artists and remained closely identified with the theatre throughout her life. She had at least one son, who announced her death in October 2026.

She was outspoken about the state of her profession. In an interview with Mosaïque FM she said that competence was no longer the yardstick for casting actors and that beauty had become more important than talent. In April 2025 she was the guest of Al Chourouk's weekly interview, looking back on a career of five decades in theatre, television and cinema.

Amel Baccouche died on Tuesday 20 October 2026, aged 77. The news was announced by her son in a message of condolence shared on social media and was reported the same day by Business News, La Presse de Tunisie, Webdo, Babnet and Radio Mosaïque FM. The cause of death and funeral arrangements had not been made public at the time of reporting.

Amel Baccouche is remembered above all as Jannet of Choufli Hal, a role that kept her in the affection of Tunisian viewers long after the series ended. Obituaries also stressed the breadth of a career rooted in regional theatre and theatre teaching, which made her one of the enduring character actresses of Tunisian drama across five decades.