Spent all day watching TV today and was forced to ponder the difference between female role models from 30 years ago and those of today

[LittleBellaLugosi]

Being as how me and the DC's have all got nasty stomach bug, we spent the day watching the X Factor followed by Star Wars.

"Girl power is back" declared one of the X Factor judges after a group of girls cavorted around in clothes which can only be described as looking like hooker-wear.

Then Star Wars presented me with Princess Leia, a female who is strong, decisive, authoritative, courageous, intelligent, blah blah blah and thirty years out of date.

And I thought about progress and then vomited again. So I thought I'd leave you to ponder it as well...

Can totally see where you're coming from.

And Harrison Ford falls for her.

What's not to love???

Oh I know. I thought this the other day, where are the good female role models?

I thought exactly that, WWW, earlier today.

I was lamenting the state of television as well.

She did have to have her breasts strapped down for that film, though. Because you couldn't be strong, decisive, authoritative, courageous and intelligent if you had breasts, obviously. Not sure that so much has changed.

Remember that in the Seventies we still had Pan's People or Hot Gossip or Legs & Co. or whoever cavorting around on Top of the Pops wearing very little.

If you want female role models there are plenty of them around these days, because women are actually allowed into positions that they wouldn't have been able to reach in 1977. Who they are is a matter of personal choice -- but, say, Kate Adie, Nicola Horlick, Susan Greenfield, Heather Cooper, Meera Syal, Paula Radcliffe, Meena Pathak... (those off the top of my head, and personally I've always had an irrational about Nicola Horlick but I give her snaps for what she's achieved).

You wouldn't know about them from certain sections of television coverage, though, admittedly.

Are you sure Carrie Fisher had them strapped down, demonaid? I'm sure I remember giggling with my brothers in the cinema because it was quite obvious she wasn't wearing a bra under that white nightie outfit(this sort of thing being hilarious to a group of 10 yr olds, you understand...)

And she certainly had them on display in the second film (whilst still being strong, feisty, independent etc!)!

Agree with the OP about Hope on the x-factor, though - girl power? Ermmm... no! Quite depressing to think we haven't moved on - in fact we've moved backwards because women have somehow been persuaded that wearing next to nothing and mugging at the camera like a blow-up doll is somehow 'empowering'. Hmmmm....

Agree about Hope. And HOW annoying is that one with the long hair, you know the one, she had on nothing some sort of cat suit last week. Grrr!

I remember reading the strapped-down thing in an interview once, but can't find a source now so it could be one of those urban legend things (although, in my memory at least, it tied in with the no-bra thing as it was a reaction to the early bra-less bouncy footage, so I suppose that's corroborating to an extent).

There are lots of women out there who have achieved things, but I'm thinking of film heroines.

I suppose there's Marian in Robin Hood dressing up as the night watchman...

Are contestants on the X Factor film heroines, then...? (it was www who was asking where the female role models were, though)

What are your parameters? Film or TV? Does it have to be specifically aimed at children/young people?

Hmm don't know. I suppose I'm thinking meeja / entertainment angles, as opposed to real people iyswim. (I'm sure that actors, singers etc. are real, but they belong in the meeja/ entertainment world as opposed to the "real" world.) This is what's so puzzling - that as you say, there are many more female role models in positions of real power around today, but the meeja/ entertainment world's portrayal of women gets ever narrower.