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The actress-turned-writer contrasted the parts female stars are often given with her own four-part Sky Atlantic series Walking and Talking.
"I was so lucky because Sky just left me alone," Burke told What's On TV.
"I didn't have to follow any rules so it felt like writing a play. I wanted to write something that reminded me of shows I used to watch in the '70s like Our Day Out and Blue Remembered Hills.
"They were great fun, but character and dialogue-led. They weren't about a young prostitute ending up a cadaver or something!"
She added: "I don't know whether it's me being older, but I just get really worried for young actresses and the things they're expected to portray now.
"They're just expected to take their clothes off and do sex scenes. Why? In this show, the girls don't even swear."
Burke has expanded characters Kath and Mary from her Sky Little Crackers programme for the new show.
