Fern Britton: I was sexually assaulted by a man in a lift

Fern Britton has revealed she was sexually assaulted by a man in a lift after a showbiz interview.

The TV presenter, 61, said the attack happened when she was working for Television South (TVS) in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Britton, who presented This Morning for 10 years until her departure in 2009, said the man started kissing her after she interviewed him.

She told the Daily Mirror: “I remember doing a television show when I worked for TVS. I was in a lift with a man I’d just interviewed.

“He suddenly jumped me and started snogging me. I asked him what on earth he thought he was doing. But it didn’t seem to shame him into stopping.

“The fact remains the most privileged person on the planet is still the white male.

“But unless they can feel as uncomfortable as single women do walking home at night in the dark or getting into a taxi alone, there’s always going to be that gap in understanding.”

“Is the pendulum beginning to swing back in the other direction? Yes, it is. But there’s still a long way to go.”

In 2017, the #MeToo movement in 2017 saw women around the world divulge their experiences of sexual assault and harassment, especially in the workplace. It followed sexual abuse allegations against film producer Harvey Weinstein.

Britton found fame while presenting Ready Steady Cook in the 1990s, and is currently starring in a stage production of Calendar Girls.

Unlike the rest of the cast, which also stars Denise Welch and Ruth Madoc, Britton’s character Marie does not have to strip off.

However she said she would have accepted the role if it required nudity, claiming it is “very discreet and funny”.

(c) Sky News 2019: Fern Britton: I was sexually assaulted by a man in a lift