Grace Dent: The Golden Globes showed women can do more than just light up the red carpet

Amy Poehler and Tina Fey’s presenting turn was a caustic triumph

Tina Fey and Amy Poelher prepare for their hosting stint at the Golden Globe Awards 2014 (Getty Images)

Despite most of us not having seen the majority of the television and film applauded by the annual Golden Globes ceremony, British interest in the red carpet hoopla grows yearly. It was a relief last night to see Mia Farrow’s son Ronan tweet, in an emperor’s new clothes-like manner: “Golden Globes SPOILER: that girl you don’t recognise from that show you don’t watch is wearing a dress.”

Ronan then went on to say some exceedingly churlish things about Woody Allen, which had people acquainted with Allen’s childcare etiquette punching the air righteously. Regardless of the ceremony’s content, hosts Amy Poehler and Tina Fey’s opening speech was a triumph of warmly administered piss-taking.

It probably surprises men to hear that even in 2014, it still feels like a coup when women – even ones as remarkable as Fey and Poehler – are permitted and trusted with the glitziest jobs in media.

Outside the ceremony, women are reduced to mumbling the name of their dress designers and showing their paws to the E! Channel “Mani Cam”. Thankfully, inside, we’re starting to let the actresses speak.

Twitter: @gracedent

Golden Globes: the best bits

Read more from Grace Dent: Valérie has the right idea – love may be a losing game but you may as well it lose in style by checking yourself into a heartbreak clinic