Jodie Foster was the talk of the Golden Globes after an emotional speech while accepting the Cecil B DeMille Award for lifetime achievement.

The usually fiercely private actress, 50, surprised the audience as she touched on her sexuality, her rarely-seen sons, Charles, 14, and Kit, 12, and her ailing mother, who suffers from dementia.

She also made a moving public tribute to her former partner Cydney Bernard, who bowed her head with emotion as she supported Foster from her seat beside their two children.

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Emotional: Foster was the talk of the Golden Globes when she touched upon her sexuality in a moving speech during the evening, as well as discussing her ailing mother, who suffers from dementia

‘Loud and proud’: The fiercely private 50-year-old surprised the audience as she raised her sexuality as she accepted her Golden Globe

Proud: Jodie’s boys Charles, 14, and Kit, 12, watched on from the audience

Biggest supporter: The actress’ former love Cydney Bernard sat directly in front of her with their sons as she addresses her family and the star-studded audience

‘While I’m here being all confessional, I guess I just have just a sudden urge to say something that I’ve never really been able to air in public,’ Miss Foster said with a smile.

‘[It’s] a declaration that I’m a little nervous about – but maybe not quite as nervous as my publicist right now. I’m just going to put it out there – loud and proud.’

She paused and asked the crowd for support before finally saying: ‘I am single.’

She received a boost from her close friend Mel Gibson, who offered a wolf-whistle from her table in the audience.

Proud: Foster looked happy and relaxed as she posed alongside her two rarely-seen sons, Charles, 14, and Kit, 12, after moving the Golden Globes audience to tears on Sunday night

Support: Jodie’s close friend Mel Gibson offered a wolf whistle during the speech

Moving: Anne Hathaway and Julianne Moore were close to tears as Jodie paid tribute to her mother

Supportive sons: Jodie’s children cheered and applauded as she finished the speech

She continued: ‘This is not going to be a big coming out speech tonight because I already did my coming out about a thousand years ago back in the stone age – in those very quaint days when a fragile girl would open up to trusted friends and family and coworkers and then gradually proudly to everyone who knew her.

‘But now apparently I’m told that every celebrity is expected to honor the details of their private life with a press conference, a fragrance and a primetime reality show.’

She thanked her ‘heroic co-parent, my ex partner in love, but righteous soul sister in life. My confessor… most beloved BFF of 20 years, Cydney Bernard.

Emotional: Jodie thanked her former partner Cydney Bernard, seen at the Golden Globes, and her mother Evelyn ‘Brandy’ Almond,  pictured in 2007

‘Thank you, Cyd. I am so proud of our modern family, our amazing sons, Charlie and Kit who are my reason to breathe and to evolve. … Boys, in case you didn’t know it, this song, like all of this, this song is for you.’

Her sons smiled proudly as they watched from the audience.

In a moment that moved most in the audience to tears, she paid tribute to her 84-year-old mother, Evelyn ‘Brandy’ Almond, who suffers from dementia.

She said: ‘I love you, I love you, I love you and I hope if I say this three times, it will magically and perfectly enter into your soul, fill you with grace and the joy of knowing that you did good in this life.’

My entourage: She was joined at the red carpet event by Gibson and her sons

Big smile: The star with her gong backstage

Fighting back tears, she added: ‘You’re a great mom. Please take that with you when you’re finally okay to go.’

She appeared to hint at retirement at the close of her speech, saying: ‘This feels like the end of one era and the beginning of something else – scary and exciting.’

Backstage, the star denied she was stepping away from the public eye, adding: ‘Oh no, I could never stop acting. You’d have to drive me behind a team of horses.’

Miss Foster publicly hinted at her sexuality for the first time in 2007 when she paid tribute to ‘my beautiful Cydney’ at Women in Entertainment event – referring to her then partner Bernard.

The former couple met on the set of the film Sommersby in 1993 and had two sons.

Miss Foster has never revealed the identity of the father or the circumstances of their conception.

As with most questions about her personal life, the actress has refused to comment on gossip that the father was an old university friend from Yale, who is also gay.

Miss Foster landed her first job in a sun cream commercial when she was three years old and appeared in 50 films before she left school, including her shocking breakthrough role as a child prostitute in Taxi Driver with Robert De Niro.

She became one of the most successful adult stars in Hollywood by taking on gutsy roles like rape victim Sarah Tobias in The Accused in 1988 and Clarice Starling in Silence of the Lambs three years later, both of which won her Best Actress Oscars.

Rosie O’Donnell ‏@Rosie tweeted: ‘jodie foster – rather amazing speech’

Kathy Griffin ‏@kathygriffin tweeted: ‘I’m a big #JodieFoster fan, especially 2nite. Her speech tells LGBT youth: America has evolved, b proud of who u are!!’

Emmy Rossum ‏@emmyrossum tweeted: ‘Jodie Foster is an inspiration. Incredible speaker. So moving.’

Sally Jessy Raphael ‏@SJRaphael tweeted: ‘Wow, Jodie Foster officially came out tonight! Bravo Jodie! Hollywood’s worst kept secret is finally “out”!

MTV News ‏@MTVNews repeated Tina Fey and Amy Poehler’s funny line on its Twitter page: ‘We’re going home with Jodie Foster!’

Saturday Night Live ‏@nbcsnl tweeted: ‘Jodie Foster doing Sally O’Malley at the Globes!! Love it.’

Mario Lopez ‏@MarioLopezExtra tweeted not so surprisingly: ‘Was so honored to hear that Jodie Foster watches me on @extratv ! pic.twitter.com/JVOmLhO1’

Lacey Chabert ‏@IamLaceyChabert: ‘Jodie Foster is truly a phenomenal talent. Well deserved!’

Britt McHenry, San Diego TV sports reporter ‏@BrittMcHenry tweeted: ‘You know you’ve succesfully gone off the ledge when even Mel Gibson is staring, jaw-dropped in disbelief #goldenglobes #jodiefoster’

Sal Vulcano ‏@SalVulcano tweeted: ‘I was following along so intently but Jodie Foster kind of lost me at the very end. I’m confused.’

papermag.com ‏@papermagazine tweeted: ‘Mel Gibson reaction shots during Jodie Foster’s speech will keep us up at night for days. So scary.’

TribecaFilm Festival ‏@TribecaFilmFest took to Twitter to say: ‘Jodie Foster just erased every other @GoldenGlobes 2013 moment with that speech. What else even happened? Bill Clinton something something?’