As the star of the hit BBC One drama Silent Witness since 2004, Emilia Fox has become one of the country's best-loved actresses working today.
Now, in an exclusive interview as Good Housekeeping's March 2022 cover star, Emilia has opened up about what it's been like to face big life changes over the years.
"In my 30s, I was dealing with lots of change in my personal life; it felt like being on a rollercoaster," she says. "In your 20s, you can pursue your career; then suddenly, in your 30s, your body clock is ticking.
"You’re trying to form the relationships that you think might last for ever and, when they don’t, you have to work out how you feel about that and what you do."
However, now 47, Emilia says that this most recent decade has been different. "Thankfully, my 40s have been much calmer – and happier, too," she says.
When discussing the biggest risks she's taken recently, she's honest about why her current relationship with her partner Jonathan, a TV producer, required a need to be brave.
"Falling in love again; that’s a big risk," she says. "You have to be prepared to put all your cards on the table, to leave your past in the past and look forward to the future together – and to be vulnerable with that. I think that’s quite a brave thing to do."
Emilia says it makes her "heart dance thinking about what attracted me to [Jonathan]."
"We’ve met at a time in our lives when we’ve both had relationships, we both have children and we’ve both been on our own and, as a result, we’re able to communicate freely, openly and honestly about everything," she smiles.
"I’ve not had communications like that in any romantic relationship, ever."
As part of Good Housekeeping's 100-year anniversary celebrations, Emilia also discussed what she thinks the greatest change in women’s lives in the last century has been - "That we have more opportunity" - and the change she'd still like to see for women:
"I’d like it to be made easier for every woman to have a working life and a home life."
Meanwhile, Emilia says activist and fellow Silent Witness actress Liz Carr has been one of her biggest inspirations over the years.
"She’s the most determined force for change, opportunity and making the most of life," Emilia says. "She’s a true inspiration, both on and off the screen."
Read the full interview with Emilia Fox in the March 2022 issue of Good Housekeeping, on sale the 27th of January. It is available in all supermarkets and online at MagsDirect.
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