Miriam Margolyes was left in shock during the final episode of her BBC Two series A New Australian Adventure when she heard a harrowing story that left her “horrified”.
The famous Harry Potter actress travelled to the remote mining community of Broken Hill in the Australian outback, where she met 14-year-old Abbie. The teenager has courageously launched The Rainbow Shoelace project, which offers support to people suffering from homophobia.
Abbie, who is proud to be queer, told Margolyes about the fierce opposition she faced, revealing that her efforts led to bullying at school and even death threats.
“The backlash left me completely terrified and I quickly felt my inner pride disappear,” Abbie admitted, visibly discouraged.
Margolyes was deeply moved by what she heard and hugged Abbie tenderly, assuring her: “This is terrible, I can’t bear it,” reported the Mirror.
In an effort to offer comfort and encouragement, Miriam remarked, “You are just pathetic and you are not going to give up on your project. You are you and you are changing the world and you are amazing.”
She also inspired Abbie with heartfelt words of affirmation: “You have to accept that you have courage and that you have used that courage to develop an idea that will give courage to other people.”
As she left Abbie’s house, the comedian was visibly moved by her encounter and said into the camera: “Actually, I’m very sad and angry because Abbie told me something about this nice town that I didn’t expect.”
“She was bullied, so some things haven’t changed. There are stupid little bullies here.”
Miriam then revealed that she had taken it upon herself to contact Abbie’s school about the bullying.
She said: “I was horrified by her story and have made a personal decision to contact her school to put an end to this matter. I just hope things get better.”
Thankfully, Miriam’s visit to Broken Hill ended on a high note as she visited an animal sanctuary. In one comical moment, she attempted to feed a carrot to a camel by holding it in her mouth so the animal could snatch it away.
“Miriam Margolyes: A New Australian Adventure” is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
