“The Industry Is Ageist”: Nicola Coughlan On Why She Was Told To Lie About Her Age

Nicola Coughlan was 31 when she got her first big breakout role as Clare Devlin in Derry Girls. It was a long time coming for the actor who grew up in a village near Galway on Ireland's west coast. Coughlan's career really began to pick up in her 30s, as the lead in Big Mood, in a brief appearance in Barbie as 'Diplomat Barbie', and she will soon be guest-starring in one of the UK's greatest television exports, Doctor Who. But of course, Coughlan's biggest rise to fame has come from the Netflix show we all know and love — Bridgerton.

The now 37-year-old will co-lead Season 3 of Bridgerton alongside her long-time friend, Luke Newton. Previously appearing in the show as the wallflower Penelope Featherington, the new season will see her transform from full-time funny girl to full-fledged romantic lead, Bridgerton makeover and all.

Thrust into the glare of the spotlight, Coughlan has found herself the subject of a few interesting musings from the Bridgerton fanbase. Most notably, fans have recently discovered Coughlan's age, resulting in video after video of TikTokers who are shocked that 37-year-olds don't become irrelevant when they hit their 30s.

In a recent interview with Refinery29 Australia at a Bridgerton red carpet event, Coughlan expressed gratitude for the positive remarks about her youthful appearance, describing them as "all very complimentary and nice." But the escalating conversations, often accompanied by astonishment, concerning women's looks, youth and ageing reflect a wearisome pattern deeply ingrained in both the entertainment industry and society as a whole — a pattern of entrenched ageism.

In a sit-down interview with Coughlan, Refinery29 Australia asked the Bridgerton star about her experiences with ageism in the industry and how women are treated as they get older. "It's incredibly difficult," Coughlan says.

She shares that earlier in her career, she was told that she should lie about her age to get better work opportunities. "I mean, it's a weird thing, because I had been advised many, many years ago by people in industry to lie about my age," Coughlan says. "I really wasn't comfortable with it, mainly because I'm like, I'm not a good liar. And I would feel weird about that."

The Irish actor points out something we all know is true, but is still rarely spoken about — ageism is rife in the entertainment industry. In fact, a 2021 report from the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media found that characters who were aged 50+ and over constituted less than a quarter of all people in blockbuster movies and top-rated TV shows. Only one out of five of these people were women. In cinematic portrayals, older women frequently find themselves relegated to roles as villains, while romantic narratives disproportionately favour younger characters.

While Coughlan is only 37 (which is young!), she's already had a glimpse at how the industry treats women as they get older, prompting her to re-think times where she has candidly revealed her age. "I think it's a difficult thing because the industry is ageist," Coughlan says. "I do have times when I go home and I'm like, should I have just not disclosed it? Should I have not done that?"

"But I think ultimately, you're then playing a part in the system of oppression of women," she says.

Before her big break in Derry Girls, the actor made a living working in an optician's office, where she worked part-time as she tried to make it in the acting world. "I'm happy to say that I had no 'in' in this industry," she shares proudly. "I came from a small village in the west of Ireland. I had no connections. I didn't have the money. I needed to take out a loan to go to drama school. I needed to work to pay off that loan. It took me until I was 30 to get a good job on television."

Calling out the gendered double standards in the industry, Coughlan points out that, "a guy can be sort of any age and it doesn't matter, but women can't be."

But for Coughlan, these struggles are the parts of herself she is the most proud of. "I did that myself," she continues. "So I don't have shame about it taking me to this point to do that. I'm actually very proud of that."