Scots comedy star Karen Dunbar has revealed she earned more money from hosting karaoke nights than starring in the first series of Chewin' the Fat.
The 51-year-old also recalled feeling "ashamed" after getting paid more when the BBC Scotland's sketch show took off during her speech at an International Women's Day debate in Glasgow.
The Ayrshire-born actress said there was still an unwillingness to discuss fair pay in the entertainment industry and blamed the "class system" for deep-rooted inequalities.
Karen, who is due to release a new BBC docuseries 'Karen Dunbar’s School of Rap' later this month, first broke into the industry after attending open auditions hosted by The Comedy Unit, the production company behind Only An Excuse and Rab C Nesbitt.
Following the success of Chewin' the Fat, which was created by Still Game stars Ford Kiernan and Greg Hemphill, Karen was subsequently given her own comedy show.
She said at the Women in Entertainment event: "I'm feart about what I'm going to say.
"The reason we don't want to talk about money is because we're aware, at a very deep level, that it's just dead unfair.
"There's a bit of my brain going 'don't tell folk this'."
She continued: "I was a karaoke host and DJing from the age of 19 until I started in Chewin' the Fat when I was 27, running my own businesses.
"I made more money doing that than I got from the first series of Chewin' the Fat.
"The point is I wasn't able to ask. I didn't know what my worth would be coming into television and I just thought whatever they were offering was what I had to accept.
"I didn't know I could say 'could I get another £10 on that please?'"
Karen said the money did go up as the show progressed and became more popular. She added: "There were times when I was thinking 'I feel ashamed about the money I'm getting'.
"I wasn't getting a squillion pounds either.
"Ultimately, if we all got paid the same the world would be a different place. We know that.
"The problem at the root of it all is the class system. I don't know how we start to disassemble it."
At the end of this month, the Scottish performer will be holding a show for Ayrshire hospice in Ayr townhall. Karen says her latest one-off BBC documentary she "hopes" is just the start of greater things to come as she confirmed there are plans to expand it further.
It will follow the lives of Glasgow grannies Maggie, Susan, Wilma, Betty and Jean as they embrace their inner rap star and share their heartwarming backstories along the way.
Karen's musical challenge culminates in a performance at a local community centre where the ladies showcase their rap skills in front of a live audience.
Karen Dunbar’s School of Rap is a 50-minute special for the ‘Loop’ arts strand, produced by BBC Scotland Productions. It will air on Thursday, March 23, at 10pm.
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