Russell Brand, David Walliams and Married at First Sight: Is this a reckoning for TV?

When another high-profile man, MasterChef presenter Gregg Wallace, faced accusations of a very different and much lesser order, relating mostly to inappropriate sexual language and humour, the reaction was similar.

Last summer, an independent inquiry upheld dozens of claims against him, and he was sacked. Wallace said “none of the serious allegations” against him had been upheld but that he was “deeply sorry for any distress caused”.

One young woman I spoke to in my investigation into Wallace texted me at the time, to give her reaction to his sacking.

“I really believe this will encourage young girls going into the TV industry to have the courage to speak up, if they feel something is wrong,” she told me.

But unions say it is still difficult for junior freelance workers, who often find their income unstable and unpredictable, to speak up.

Vulnerable workers “continue to fear raising concerns”, said head of broadcast union Bectu, Philippa Childs.

She’s echoed by Freeman, who said an “attitude of protecting the talent” remained.

“There will always be wealthy famous predators,” she said. But, she added: “Hopefully more and more people at TV stations and movie studios are willing to hear these young people and will take them seriously”.

For more senior people in TV, raising the alarm can also be difficult.

Earlier this week, comedian Lucy Beaumont told Sky News: “The reason high-profile people are not saying anything is because they lose work, because you’re seen that you might be a trouble causer. It does need to be said that there needs to be some intervention.”

Social media has also played a role in encouraging people to speak up.

And policing investigations have had to keep pace – and adapt – with media scrutiny often prompting authorities to investigate.

Attitudes towards women who speak up are also starting to change – although not always.

Some of what unfolded in court during the Russell Brand case felt like a throwback to how rape cases used to be conducted.

Many have commented on Brand’s lawyer’s defence tactics against the accusers on the stand – behaviour Freeman said would have been “standard” in the past.

But Freeman noted it was heartening to hear the judge’s remarks in summing up the case – which have also been widely shared by women online and praised for dispelling rape myths.

When Mr Justice Bennathan sentenced Brand to ten-and-a-half years, he told him: “Whatever women wear, wherever they go, indeed whatever they drink, they retain the right to say no.”

“I think attitudes have changed,” said Freeman. “It doesn’t mean those assaults don’t happen any more but attitudes around them have changed.”