Debbie Arnold says Michael Winner asked her to 'expose her breasts' during audition
This man was a bully... he bullied young girls into doing this - it's just so sad.
In the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal, three women have accused the late British film producer and director Michael Winner of inappropriate behaviour, alleging he demanded they expose their breasts during auditions.
Coronation Street and Eastenders regular Debbie Arnold and Crossroads actress Cindy Marshall-Day - along with an unnamed woman - have spoken out about their ordeals, calling Winner, who died in 2013, “a horrible, filthy pervert” and indicating that the ‘casting couch’ culture highlighted by the Weinstein allegations extended well beyond Hollywood.
An aspiring actress, Debbie Arnold claims she was sexually harassed by Winner during an audition at his home in the early 1980s. She claims Winner demanded she expose and fondle her breasts as he looked on.
He said, 'now I'd like you to take off your top, and then take off your bra and massage your breasts'
Cindy, who played Tracey Booth in Crossroads, recalled a similar experience, claiming that Winner also asked to see her breasts during an audition in 1985.
''It was shocking what the man did to young actresses,'' Cindy told Ben and Amanda. "It was a modus operandi, he must have been doing the same thing for years."
The pair say they've been inspired by women coming forward to make claims of sexual abuse against Hollywood movie mogul Harvey Weinstein - allegations he denies.
They were joined on the sofa alongside former police officer Mark Williams-Thomas, who was instrumental in exposing sexual predator Jimmy Savile and says it’s important to take historic allegations seriously.