Joan Bakewell

The liberal mood back in the 60s was that sex was pleasurable and wholesome and shouldn't be seen as dirty and wicked. The Pill allowed women to make choices for themselves. Of course, that meant the risk of making the wrong choice. But we all hoped girls would grow to handle the new freedoms wisely. Then everything came to be about money: so now sex is about money, too. Why else sexualise the clothes of little girls, run TV channels of naked wives, have sex magazines edging out the serious stuff on newsagents' shelves? It's money that's corrupted us and women are being used and are even collaborating. Show less «

I think the fact that people are phased out, people like Moira Stuart and Selina (Selina Scott) - out of the public eye - when they become a certain age is a real disadvantage to serious broadcasting. There's a whole segment of the British population that does not see its equivalent in serious broadcasting and that is women over 55. Now, that is not healthy for a broadcasting organisation's relationship with its audience. The public should be represented on the screen in various colours, forms, sexualities, whatever. There's no reason why the women should depart while the men stay in office. That's a straightforward matter of legitimate equality. Older women tell me they feel invisible and they literally are invisible on television. We need to do something about that because television represents such a picture of who we are as a community. Show less «