Angela Lansbury has sparked controversy by suggesting women should accept "some of the blame" in some instances of sexual misconduct committed by men.
The 92-year-old actress – famous for her roles in ‘Beauty and the Beast’, TV series ‘Murder She Wrote’ and ‘Nanny McPhee’ – was quizzed about her opinion on the avalanche of sexual harassment and assault claims sweeping through Hollywood at present in an interview with Radio Times magazine, and she stated that sometimes there can be "two sides to this coin" due to the revealing and alluring clothes ladies wear.
She said: "There are two sides to this coin. We have to own up to the fact women, since time immemorial, have gone out of their way to make themselves attractive. And unfortunately it has backfired on us, and this is where we are today. We must sometimes take blame. Although it’s awful to say we can’t make ourselves look as attractive as possible without being knocked down and raped."
Clarifying that she categorically believes that no one should be subjected to sexual harassment or assault, she added: "Should women be prepared for this? No, they shouldn’t have to be. There’s no excuse for that."
Now the huge volume of allegations have been made against the likes of Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and Brett Ratner and others, Lansbury believes the culture of sexual misconduct will end.
She said: "I think it will stop now – it will have to. I think a lot of men must be very worried at this point."