Helena Bonham Carter, 56, claims the acting industry ‘continues to be discriminatory’ against women

Helena Bonham Carter has claimed that the acting industry “continues to be discriminatory and women bear the brunt of it”.

Appearing on Friday’s The Graham Norton Show to promote her new show Nolly, the 56-year-old actress admitted that Hollywood “has gotten better in terms of men calling the shots.”

He went on to joke that the upcoming ITVX drama, which portrays the life of Crossroads star Noele Gordon, is like ‘Me Too’ but without the sex.

Helena said: ‘He’s getting better. We have many women producers and more women making the decisions, but I think it is still discriminatory and women bear the brunt.

She was joined by Russell T Davies to discuss her latest project, Nolly, which follows the life of Crossroads star Noele Gordon and is due for release sometime this year.

Russell, speaking of the legendary soap opera, said: ‘The first thing I wrote was a script for Crossroads. I sent it off and they invited me to Birmingham.

“I was so excited to be there because I loved it, but I could see the fear in their eyes when they realized that I was a super fan.

What?! Helena plays the late Crossroads star Noele, who was fired without ceremony, warning or explanation at the height of the show’s success in 1981.

“I went and wrote a proper script and submitted it. Five days later, the show was cancelled. I waited 40 years and finally got to write it, so I finally did it!’

Helena added: “The person I would love the most is Noele Gordon. She was a wonderful woman. I wasn’t exactly aware of who she was but when I read the script it was a gift, a love letter to her and to any actor.

‘It was beautiful and hilarious. He had guts and he was very gallant and told things exactly as they were. The show is ‘Me too’ without sex because she stood up to the bullies. Everyone needs a Nolly in her life.

Helena plays the late Crossroads star Noele, who was fired without ceremony, warning or explanation at the height of the show’s success in 1981.

Getting better: Appearing on The Graham Norton Show on Friday, the actress, 56, admitted that Hollywood “has gotten better in terms of men calling the shots,” however

Exciting: Russell T Davies joined her to discuss her latest project, Nolly, which portrays the life of Crossroads star Noele Gordon.

Speaking about his role, according to Mirror, said: ‘When I read the script, it was like a gift. A dream. It’s like meeting someone and falling in love.

I saw Crossroads. So I knew Noele Gordon as a figure, but I hadn’t really been aware of the looting. Mark added that filming her part was “a pleasure.”

The three-part miniseries, written by Russell, will explore the all-powerful reign and fall from grace of the inimitable Noele, who died in 1985.

Noele was declared the ‘Queen of the Midlands’ thanks to Meg Mortimer’s iconic role in Crossroads and was the darling of the establishment until it turned on her.

In the role of the grey-haired widow Meg in the long-running soap opera Crossroads, Noele became one of the most famous people in Britain.

Then, in 1981, at the height of the show’s success and the height of her fame, she was fired without ceremony, without notice, and without explanation, with the soap finally ending two years later.

With the boss’s words “all good things must come to an end” ringing in her ears, Noele found herself thrown out of the show that had been her life for over 18 years.

A love letter to a television legend and the wacky soap opera she starred in, Nolly will be an entertaining journey through Noele’s most tumultuous years and a sharp, loving and heartbreaking portrait of a forgotten icon.

The Graham Norton Show, BBC One, Friday, January 20 at 10:40 p.m. Also available on BBC iPlayer.

Uncanny: The BAFTA winner said: ‘When I read the script, it was like a gift. A dream. It’s like meeting someone and falling in love’ (pictured left in character. File photo of Meg right)