Actress says profits put before people in Grenfell fire tragedy

The Bafta-winning Chewing Gum actress and screenwriter was the first person of a black or ethnic minority background to ever deliver the main speech at the industry event.

Coel talked about Khadija Saye, a Gambian-British photographer who was on the cusp of a career breakthrough when she died aged 24 in the Grenfell Tower fire.

One of the most high-profile victims of the June 2017 tragedy, Saye was due to appear in a BBC documentary which followed her as she launched a photography exhibition in Venice.

Discussing the difficulties people in the media industry face while climbing the ladder, Coel said: '˜Some find themselves so high their photographs are showcased at prestigious exhibitions in Venice.

'˜A queen was recognised last year: Queen Khadija Saye.

'˜But when the narrative of climbing makes others put profits before people; fitting cheap cladding into their tower blocks, what then?'

Speaking on broader terms, she added: '˜How many other potential artists with stories we want and need have we lost for the sake of financial profit, have we lost to thoughtless education systems, thoughtless nurturing, thoughtlessness?

'˜Why are we platforming misfits, heralding them as newly rich successes whilst they balance on creaking ladders with little chance of social mobility?

Coel said she cannot help '˜usher them' into the industry "if there are doors within it which they can't open, it feels complicit".

She added: '˜What I can do is be transparent about my experiences, because transparency helps.'

During the lecture, for which Coel received a standing ovation, the TV star also told of the challenges she has faced as a black woman in the industry.

She also claimed she was sexually assaulted while at work, and that it inspired her to write a new TV drama.