Carrie Fisher

Her mother, Debbie Reynolds, belonged to an era in which women predominantly played second-string to male leads in the movies; Carrie Fisher came into the industry when it was still chauvinistic but perhaps beginning to show the first glimmers of change. Hence Princess Leia is a curious mixture of sexualised object of the male gaze in ever more revealing outfits as the original trilogy of Star Wars unfolds and a feisty protagonist more than capable of holding her own with and against the major male characters.

To be honest the gender balance is still unequal amongst film makers and amongst consumers - the vile outpourings from some quarters about her weight in The Force Awakens proved that some not only persist with such Neanderthal views but that their expectations of the female body have been distorted by digital trickery and airbrushing.

In the wake of her death at only sixty years of age I have realised that I, like many others, defined Carrie by a single role and had forgotten that she appears in such movies as The Blues Brothers, When Harry Met Sally and Shampoo. I did know she was a Hollywood script doctor although I'm not sure which films she added her magic to. I also knew she was a talented writer and that the excellent film Postcards From The Edge is adapted from her highly successful, barely fictional novel.

Yet still I have seen her as Princess Leia my whole life. In my defence can I just say that while I sometimes recall Patrick Stewart was in the first Dune film and know he plays Professor X, he will always be Jean-Luc Picard to me. And Mark Hamill will always be...oh wait, that's obvious.

I grew up with Leia. I was eleven or twelve when I saw the very first Star Wars film. I was too young to fancy her but she left an indelible impression, both because of the crazy hair and her performance. Arguably she is the best actor in that original film: Alec Guinness doesn't appear to give a shit about understanding his lines, Hamill is Hamill and Harrison Ford is barely more intelligible than Chewbacca half the time. Fisher carries emotional conviction and wields a blaster with ease. And ignores her ridiculous hair with great dignity.

Carrie was wary of fame yet grew to be a fan favourite at conventions for her authenticity and wit. She was painfully honest about her struggles with mental health issues and addiction. If Felicity Jones and Daisy Ridley prove to be as popular with several generations of audiences in forty years time they can consider their careers and legacy to be as successful as Fisher's.

The fact that she'd already filmed her scenes for the 2017 follow-up to The Force Awakens will add poignancy and attention to the juggernaut franchise Star Wars has become. She thought, back in 1976, she was spending three months filming a funny little science fiction film with droids and stuff. Well, she was, but she was also about to become a cultural icon, one still revered and respected all these years later. Maybe no actor really likes to be remembered for a single role but what an impact the role of Leia had. That's not a bad memory to leave people with, surely?