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The story behind 'that' Phoebe Waller-Bridge Emmys photo

IMAGEN DISTRIBUIDA POR LA ACADEMIA DE TELEVISIÓN - Phoebe Waller-Bridge acepta el premio a actriz protagonista en una serie cómica por "Fleabag" en la 71ra edición de los Premios Emmy, el domingo 22 de septiembre de 2019 en el Microsoft Theater de Los Ángeles. (Foto de Phil McCarten/Invision para la Academia de Televisión/AP Images)
Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Credit: Phil McCarten/Invision/AP Images)

If you've been anywhere even adjacent to social media since Sunday, you'll have seen 'that photo' of Fleabag's Phoebe Waller-Bridge basking in Emmy glory.

She's sat in a lounger at the Chateau Marmont hotel, with a margarita in one hand, a cigarette in the other, and the spoils of a successful awards evening surrounding her.

Read more: Fleabag dominates at the Emmys

It has a – doubtless intentional – vibe of Faye Dunaway's iconic shot, taken by her then-husband, photographer Terry O’Neill, at the Beverly Hills Hotel the morning after she won the Oscar for her role in Network in 1977.

Now the man behind the camera, Waller-Bridge's friend and head of BBC Comedy Josh Cole, has filled in the gaps for us.

He told the Evening Standard: “We were celebrating the win and we just went out to the pool and took a moment to relax.

“We may have slightly placed the Emmys either side of her [Waller-Bridge] but the whole thing was such an iconic moment. It needed to be captured.

“All it takes is a little clarendon filter on Instagram and you’ve got an iconic shot.”

He added: “From yesterday, it’s spread like wildfire on the Internet. It’s ridiculous, but great.”

And as for receiving the proper accreditation, it seems he's not hugely bothered.

“I think that’s generally the way it is when things go viral,” he said.

“It kind of stops mattering [where it’s from], if it’s on Twitter, it just gets retweeted and retweeted.

“I don’t really mind but it’s also not that often that you take a photo of someone who just won numerous Emmys so it’s kind of nice to get the credit for it as well.”

Fleabag won an impressive four Emmys on Sunday night, the show's creator Waller-Bridge herself winning Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy series and the gong for Outstanding Writing.

It also won Outstanding Comedy Series, while director Harry Bradbeer won Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series.

Since then, Waller-Bridge has signed an exclusivity deal with Amazon, said to have been in discussion prior to her sweeping the board at the Emmys, but now sealed.

According to reports, it's worth £50 million.