Stacey Dooley has said she does not consider herself brave but is determined to give women a voice.
The documentary maker has explored often-violent front lines in the battle for women’s rights across the world.
Experiences in war zones and other fraught areas have gone into her book, On The Front Line With The Women Who Fight Back.
Dooley, who has visited Iraq several times for her work, said everyone deserves to have their stories told.
— Stacey Dooley (@StaceyDooley) May 22, 2019
She does not think she is courageous, but feels a duty to women across the globe.
Speaking at the Hay Festival, she said: “I don’t know if I’m brave, it’s probably more stupidity than anything else.
“Without sounding too Miss World or too earnest, I believe in what I do.
“I believe that these girls deserve to have a voice. I believe that everybody deserves a platform.
“You hope that if everything in your life went upside down, there would be women elsewhere that would come and speak on your behalf.”
Dooley said she has not sought therapy for any of her experiences, although she admits that “I don’t always feel fine all of the time”.
She said there is a demographic that may not “listen to Radio 4” or read certain papers who still want to know about the world.
The Strictly Come Dancing winner and filmmaker said she does not want to impose her experiences on others and enjoys more trivial conversations between jobs.
She said: “No-one likes that person who works in television making current affairs documentaries and sits in the pub and talks about everything they’ve done.
“This is not our life. It’s not my pals’ world. I quite like that actually.”