Editor’s letter
When Emilia Clarke collapsed with a brain haemorrhage shortly after filming the first series of Game of Thrones, her real fear was not dying, but losing her job, she tells Helena Lee on page 138. Her bravery, and commitment to her craft, has since seen her take on a raft of dynamic passion projects, from funding and starring in a new independent film examining the pitfalls of artificial intelligence to writing a feminist comic book and even setting up her own medical charity.
Clarke is just one of the winners of our 2023 Women of the Year Awards, in which we celebrate those who have impressed us the most over the past 12 months. Among our other honorees are the actress Jenna Ortega, who shows us how, as the youthful star of Wednesday, she navigates her sudden global fame with grace and modesty, and the Oscarwinning director Emerald Fennell, who dives into the inspiration behind her darkly comic narratives. The designer and philanthropist Tory Burch reveals why her determination to champion women in the workplace led to a billion-dollar fashion brand; and the footballer Alessia Russo muses on her team’s World Cup heroics. We encounter the multi-talented musician and actor Janelle Monáe on a New York rooftop, and travel back in time with the bestselling author Maggie O’Farrell. Together, this dazzling cohort bring power, perspective, glamour and grit to our features portfolio this issue.
Meanwhile, those for whom the festive season is already looming large may call on the expertise of the photograph
