The young woman was greeted by cheering as she took the stage. She began with a joke about being asked to give a lecture: "Ex-boyfriends have accused me of giving these. Universities have accused me of never attending them!" There were plenty more jokes to come - but also some home truths that made many of the audience uncomfortable.

Michaela Coel was giving the 2018 James MacTaggart Memorial Lecture,¹ the highlight of the Edinburgh TV Festival. Other recent speakers have included Emily MaitlisA British journalist and former BBC newsreader. and Armando IannucciA Scottish satirist, writer, director, producer and performer. . But Coel stood out as the first Black female speaker in its 42-year history.

The talk was about her life and her struggle to achieve success. Above all, it was about not fitting in.

A misfit, she says, is someone who feels ostracisedExcluded from a group. by society - but also someone "who simply looks around the world and sees it in a way that's different".

Her story is disturbing, but also hugely inspiring. Coel's parents were immigrants from Ghana who separated before she was born. Her mother, a social-sciences student, worked as a cleaner to support her and her older sister.

There were few other Black people on the estate where they lived in Tower HamletsPart of London's East End, it has a higher rate of poverty and unemployment than any other borough in the city.. At primary school, she was the only Black girl in her class. Not until secondary school did she find friends who were like her.

When she was 18, she joined a dance group linked to the Pentecostal ChurchA Christian movement which emphasises direct experience of God. It has over 700 different denominations.. The Church's message of forgiveness and loving kindness inspired her so much that she decided to drop out of university to help spread the word. 

While performing spoken-word poetry in clubs and cafes, she was spotted by the playwright Che Walker, who told her she should be an actress. At 22 she went to study at the Guildhall School of Music and DramaOne of the world's best colleges for the performing arts, it counts Daniel Craig, Paapa Essiedu and Jodie Whittaker among its former students. - and found that she was the only person in her class whose family did not own their house.

"The way I looked at myself and my life shifted," she says. "My family has rented our whole lives... It gives you a drive, an ambition, because nothing is certain. That is a resilience no person with stability can replicate. You can't forget it. There's blessings to the struggle."

For her graduation, she wrote a one-woman show about a HackneyAn area of London that neighbours Tower Hamlets. schoolgirl. It was so well received that she was asked to perform it at the National Theatre, and write a TV version. Chewing Gum won two BAFTAsAn award given at the British Academy Film Awards ceremony. , one for her writing and one for her performance.  

She was working on the second series when she was sexually assaulted after having her drink spikedWhen someone puts alcohol or drugs into someone's drink or food without their knowledge and permission. in a bar. This traumatic event inspired her to write the TV drama I May Destroy You, about a young woman who has a similar experience. When it was released in 2020, it won four BAFTAs and two EmmysEmmy Awards are awards given for work in the American and international television industry. . Time named Coel as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.²

"Sharing that much pain was quite healing," she says: "A really useful way of discovering something new about the journey from pain to - sounds so cliche - power."

Yes: The harder the struggle, the more impressive the victory when you come out on top. Difficult situations make you draw on all your resources and show the world what you are capable of.  

No: Some people are born with incredible talents which bring them huge success. They may have to work hard to realise their full potential, but they do not necessarily have to suffer as well.

Or... You may not have to overcome adversity to succeed, but it is far more satisfying if you do. We tend to take the things that come to us easily for granted, rather than appreciating them as we should.  

Emily Maitlis - A British journalist and former BBC newsreader.

Armando Iannucci - A Scottish satirist, writer, director, producer and performer.

Ostracised - Excluded from a group.

Tower Hamlets - Part of London's East End, it has a higher rate of poverty and unemployment than any other borough in the city.

Pentecostal Church - A Christian movement which emphasises direct experience of God. It has over 700 different denominations.

Guildhall School of Music and Drama - One of the world's best colleges for the performing arts, it counts Daniel Craig, Paapa Essiedu and Jodie Whittaker among its former students.

Hackney - An area of London that neighbours Tower Hamlets.

BAFTAs - An award given at the British Academy Film Awards ceremony.

Spiked - When someone puts alcohol or drugs into someone's drink or food without their knowledge and permission.

Emmys - Emmy Awards are awards given for work in the American and international television industry.