Is there a lack of roles for older women on stage and screen?
According to a new report from the International Reseach Unit at the Warwick Business School, male actors have longer careers than their female counterparts. The research suggests than when it comes to the availability of meaningful roles, if you are an actress over 40, then your age and gender are going to count against you. In the past on Woman's Hour, Meryl Streep, Susan Sarandon and Juliet Stephenson have all expressed their frustration at the lack of decent parts for older women and have claimed that older female audiences are poorly served by both film and theatre. The actors' union EQUITY has recently launched a petition on its website calling for equal representation of women in TV/film. To discuss the issues Jenni is joined by author and critic Bidisha and by Kate Harwood, Controller Series and Serials, BBC Drama Production.
