Elizabeth McGovern has urged female actors to "own" the sexual side of their "journey".
Elizabeth McGovern has reflected on her relationships and journey through fame
The 63-year-old actress - known for her roles in the likes of 'Downton Abbey' - has recalled her experiences of fame at 19, and she insisted many of her sexual experiences in her 20s were "educational".
She told the 'Rosebud' podcast: "I think back on that whole time. Of course there were lots of sexual experiences.
"And now this kind of recent way that people have started to look again at work practices has been very interesting for me, because when I think back on my early professional life I have to say and take responsibility for the fact that I was as interested in having sexual experiences as the guys.
"And I have to say I wanted it and appreciated it, and sometimes I think that women should own that a bit in their journey professionally."
Elizabeth noted she "can only speak for" herself, but she "needed" to go down that path as "part of the process" of growing up.
She added: "For me, I had what I consider to be very educational experiences with different people along that way during that decade, and it was very good for me.
"I really needed it."
Elizabeth - who insisted there were no unhappy experiences - recalled her debut role in 1980's 'Ordinary People' during a period where she lost touch with her friends from high school.
She said: "Right after I graduated high school [came] what I feel in retrospect is sort of a cataclysmic turn of events, which was for one reason or another I was suddenly for a short period of time a 'movie star'.
"I was in high school and we were all thinking about graduating and what we were going to do and where we were going to go.
"I was auditioning for drama schools, and they were looking for kids to be in a movie that was being cast called 'Ordinary People' that Robert Redford was directing.
"That kick started a career that led to me being in director Milos Forman's Ragtime the next year, and so it felt like there was a snowball career happening.
"I say cataclysmic because it really slightly derailed me. I suddenly felt very separated from all the friendships I'd formed in high school."
She had "a kind of boyfriend" at the time, and they have remained in touch.
She explained: "I did have a kind of boyfriend - that was a sort of physical awakening. And actually a really lovely guy that I'm sometimes in touch with still."
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