April 30, 2025
ISLAMABAD – Nicola Coughlan, best known for her role as Penelope Featherington in Netflix’s hit period drama Bridgerton, recently appeared at Canneseries to speak out on issues close to her heart, including Israel’s massacre of Palestinians, trans rights in the UK, and the importance of allyship in difficult times.
Awarded the Commitment Prize by French media company Konbini for being a “talent actively making a change well beyond television,” the Irish actor delivered a candid and heartfelt career talk on Monday, Variety reported. She addressed both her work and her activism.
When asked about her public support for Palestine, Coughlan spoke with conviction: “There is a factor of ‘it’s better if you say nothing’ because our job is to entertain you,” she admitted.
“But my dad was in the Irish Army, which is a peacekeeping force. My family lived in Jerusalem and Syria in the 70s, so it’s something that is in my bones.”
Referring to Israel’s ongoing bombardment of Gaza, she added, “We are talking about right or wrong, about children being bombed in their beds. I wouldn’t accept that anywhere in the world… Any country in the world that was facing this, I would talk about it. It’s not difficult. For me, the killing of innocent people is never right.”
Coughlan also noted the long-standing solidarity between Ireland and Palestine, saying the two places share “ideals and struggles.”
In the same breath, she turned to the UK’s shifting legal landscape regarding trans rights, criticising a recent Supreme Court ruling that defines “woman” based on biological sex, legislation that could bar trans women from accessing women’s spaces.
“I feel like the rights of queer people have been chipped away for the last few years and this is a blatant move to take rights away from people,” she said. “The only time I have ever been made to feel scared has been by cis men. I have never been scared by a trans woman in my life.”
Coughlan recently posted a video to raise funds for Not a Phase, a trans-led UK charity that faced potential closure after losing corporate sponsorships. Thanks to public donations. The organisation can now continue supporting thousands.
“It’s not trendy to support trans people anymore,” she said. “But being an ally is about letting yourself be the buffer. It’s all fun to go to Pride, wave a flag, and watch RuPaul’s Drag Race but are you going to be there for people when it’s awkward and uncomfortable?”
Having previously served as a guest judge on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, Coughlan reflected on how drag culture helped her regain confidence during a low point in her career.
Career-wise, the actor is on a high. She recently earned her first BAFTA nomination for Big Mood, a genre-blending comedy-drama created by her longtime friend Camilla Whitehill. “I never got to play anyone like her before,” she said. “She’s difficult, she’s funny… quite cool, in a way.”
While Coughlan confirmed that a second season of Big Mood is in the works alongside Bridgerton’s fourth season, she teased a major new project announcement coming imminently. “You have to wait less than 24 hours,” she told an eager Canneseries audience.