Emilia Fox has told Female First that women have been empowered to take centre-stage on TV and movie film sets after a dramatic change in the culture of inspired by the #MeToo movement.
Emelia stars in popular TV show Delicious
Fox has enjoyed a stellar career in television that has included her long-running role in the highly rated BBC show Silent Witness, as well as acclaimed performances alongside Dawn French and Sheila Hancock in Sky One's enduringly successful drama Delicious.
Now she has told Female First that the presence of all-female stars in big-budget small and big-screen productions, with Delicious an example of a female-dominated cast and crew producing a drama that has been among the highest rated on Sky One for the last three years.
“Delicious is a series that has women of all different ages at its heart and it feels like this is a very apt show for the moment we are living through right now,” Fox told us.
“I am in my 40s, Dawn is a little more mature and yet we are all playing roles that have romantic elements that remind everyone that you can still enjoy that kind of thing after your 40th birthday.
“We also have a lot of female writers and women behind the camera as well and it has been great to see Sky championing a show with so many women involved.
“Maybe that line-up of people would have been seen as unusual a few years ago, but not any longer and this is a sign of progress after so many great steps forward in empowering female actresses with everything that has gone on in the industry over the last couple of years.
“That said, I believe there needs to be a balance as men and women bring different qualities to every job and I feel we have a wonderful mix on Delicious that has helped to create a happy team on and off camera.”
There was a time when movie actors would look down at their counterparts performing in television, but Fox believes the small screen has become a more attractive option.
"I remember doing Henry XIII with Ray Winstone when I was in my 20s," she continues. "I was one of his wives and he was working in movies at the time and I asked him why he was doing this show on television and his answer always stuck with me as he said; more people will see it on television than they would if it was a movie.
"He saw that before many others. Film actors never used to do television work, there was definitely a divide, but it has gone now and this change has happened within my career. Movies are harder and harder to make and it is much more a gamble with a movie whether it will ever get a release.
"If you make a show for television, you know pretty much it will happen and the production value and quality of work we see on Netflix, Sky and all these wonderful new platforms have taken television drama to a whole new level."
Season Three of Delicious was a big hit on Sky One over the Christmas period, with the introduction of the dashing Mason Elliott (played by Vincent Regan) adding spice to the already complex relationship shared by business partners Sam and chef Gina (played by Fox and French).
The love triangles that have been a central platform of this compelling story took fresh twists, with Fox relishing the chance to link up with her beloved friend French once again.
“Dawn is hilarious to work with and I always look forward to going back to work on this show every year as it means I get a chance to spend time with her,” she continues. “We literally talk from 6.30am in the morning until 8pm at night. She is just a wonderful person to be around.
“She lights up a room when she walks into it with her charisma and you can totally see why she has had this incredible career. Her charm is as wonderful off-screen as it is on it.
“Hopefully Sky will give us a chance to make a fourth series of Delicious and I would certainly be up for that if the offer was there.”
All three seasons of Delicious are available to stream now on Sky.
By Kevin Palmer
Tagged in Entertainment