Emily Atack had "several breakdowns" during the making of her sexual harassment documentary 'Asking For It?'.

Emily Atack struggled making her sexual harassment documentary

Emily Atack struggled making her sexual harassment documentary

The 33-year-old star bravely discussed her experiences of receiving abuse and unwanted advances online in the programme that aired on BBC Two in January and admits that it had a devastating impact on her mental health.

Speaking onstage at Stylist Live in London, Emily said: "To be honest, it was awful.

"The documentary coming out was a really difficult time for my family.

"There were moments I would say, ‘I don’t think I can face another day of this.’

"I had several breakdowns in the middle of it. It was rough."

The 'Inbetweeners' star described it as an "awful thing" that victims of sexual harassment often blame themselves for what has happened.

She said: "The awful thing about this sort of thing is everybody blames themselves – this is why I called the documentary 'Asking For It?'"

Emily also revealed that there have been occasions where she has been made to feel uncomfortable while working.

She explained: “I’ve found myself in awful situations, especially on film sets.

"I have had to reshape those events in my head as a coping mechanism and go, ‘Maybe that was my fault, slightly’, if a man in a position of power had abused trust."

Emily broke down in tears during the documentary as she confessed that she felt to blame for the bombardment of unsolicited messages she gets on a daily basis.

She told her mum Kate Robbins: "I see the pain in your face when we try and talk about things.

"We can't talk about them because it's too difficult."

'Spitting Image' star Kate replied: "It's very difficult - the overriding feeling of guilt is a difficult one to explain to people."

Emily then began to cry, and said: "Sorry, I don't know why I'm getting upset I think I'm really tired. Sorry it's just so uncomfortable."


Tagged in