Friends star slams iconic TV comedy 30 years on

ok.co.uk:

Aisha Tyler, who starred in the legendary sitcom Friends, has candidly discussed her time as one of the show's few black cast members.The 53-year-old actress was the only black woman to have a recurring role on the series, making her first appearance in its ninth season in 2003.

She portrayed palaeontology professor Charlie Wheeler, the girlfriend David Schwimmer's character, Ross Geller's girlfriend.

Before settling down with Ross, she had a couple of dates with Joey Tribbiani, famously played by Matt LeBlanc. Aisha has now admitted that the predominantly white cast was a hot topic during the show's run.

She revealed: "It wasn't like it was just something that people looked back at later and said, 'Wait a minute.'." "No, at the time, people talked quite a bit about the fact that, for a show that was set in the heart of Manhattan, it really lacked diversity," she told the Independent. "But we didn't have social media back then, so it wasn't the large-scale conversation that it became later." Aisha said she knew that David Schwimmer, who also co-directed the show, was advocating for more diversity.The actress, who remains an advocate for diversity, urging women, people of colour, and other underrepresented communities to seize control of the lens and mould their unique narratives, also warmly recalled the friendships she formed on set, including her bond with the late Matthew Perry, who played the lovable Chandler Bing.