Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
I was rubbish at school.
I can't bear kissing scenes.
I have done Botox, and I loved it.
I open the doors for everybody all the time.
I think I remember being held by my mum as a baby.
I'm always keen to have more training as a charity patron.
I don't like the bullying, do-one-over style of comedy. It's so cheap.
I always assumed I'd be a terribly patient mum but it turns out I'm not!
I don't have a process; I just feel it. My book on acting would be very short.
I am just an actor - all I do is I memorise someone else's words and tart around.
Actually, lots of women, when they're pregnant, feel like steel. They feel incredible.
I've been working a long time; it was a slow burn. But I'm grateful it's been like that.
To play something which is a big spectrum is so much more fun, so much more of a challenge.
If people still trust me with a funny line, then that is fine. If that is what gets me work.
For some reason, people imagine that dramatic things happen to people who don't look beautiful.
I spent years commuting into London when I was working as a temp, and I hated the monotony of it.
If the script's good, everything you need is in there. I just try and feel it, and do it honestly.
I was nervous about meeting Charlotte Rampling, as she's a proper legend, but she is just so sweet.
I've been with my husband and friends for so long, I've forgotten what is unappealing to new people.
Proper love should be utterly supportive and comfortable, and it feels like a raincoat or a jacket potato.
The first time I did a school play was the first time I felt I was good at anything at all. I just loved it.
I love my job and I know I am very lucky but still, if you audition and you don't get it, it still affects you.
Everything with me is pretty close to the surface, but having kids has completely ruined my emotional equilibrium.
Dementia is such a terrifying thing for all of us, and we are particularly bad at coping with old people in this country.
I always assumed I would leave drama school and do 'Lady Macbeth' and all sorts of serious things. It just didn't happen.
As a child, I thought, 'Once I am a grown-up, there will be no more fear, no more worries,' and it turns out that's not true.
Everybody laughs all the time, and some of the worst things that happen make you laugh 'cause it's a defense isn't it, I suppose.
My older brother, who was in the Army, now owns his own building company. My half-sister was a nurse and is now a psychotherapist.
I suppose I have played a lot of put-upon women, but it's never bothered me. They've never been weak - they've always got steel in them.
I feel fortunate that I'm not a beauty. I'm not a classic beauty. I feel it is harder for girls who are like that. There are fewer parts.
I eat a bit too much; my teeth aren't perfect; I've got eye bags. I look like a normal 39-year-old woman - but in England, no one minds that.
If a script is good, you are 10 steps into the part just reading it. But my choices are not all down to my taste. It is about people you have worked with before.
I find Shakespeare terrifying. When Simon Russell Beale does a speech, I understand every word of it, but if I did the same speech, people would be going, 'Huh? What?'
I had a lovely, feral, free childhood - out and then come back when you're hungry or it gets too dark. I feel slightly cruel that I'm not offering my children the same.
It gets slightly daunting if you're watching the telly and everybody's gorgeous. It's just so rubbish. And I'm grateful that it's not so much anymore - it's great to see.
I am a perfectly normal woman. If what we do is storytelling and represent people that we see all day and every day, well, we do not see supermodels all day and every day.
In general, I'm rubbish in heels. I love them, and I own a lot because it's like being in a sweet shop: they're pretty. But I'm not good in them. I don't walk nicely in heels.
There was nothing about 'The Killing' that patronized its audience, and it was quite slow and detailed, all of the things which, for a long time, people had been nervous of making.
I'm not a pin-up, thankfully. I'm not suggesting I feel unconfident. I am beautiful to my husband. I am beautiful to my friends. I feel sexy and all those things with the people I love.
I'd feel bad pretending my life was anything other than pretty good, so I do the role as well as I can and then I go home, have a cup of tea, see my family and friends, and appreciate what I've got.
I used to want to be in 'Downton' because I had never been in a period drama, but then I did 'The Suspicions of Mr Whicher' and had to wear one of those frocks and... I didn't feel very comfortable.
I've always done drama, but I suppose 'Tyrannosaur' was a bit of a watershed moment for me. It was like when Kathy Burke did 'Nil By Mouth' - suddenly, people were saying, 'Oh, she can do that, too.'
If I didn't have children I might be more of a lush than I am. I like booze. I struggle with smoking. And I'm a big swearer. I'm trying to rein it in but I do think it's a nice seasoning of language.
I remember doing one of those computer careers tests. It told me I'd make an ideal HGV lorry driver because I've got 100 per cent spatial awareness. I'd be able to back them into tight parking spots.
I am a bit sickie happy. I am prone to black clouds too, but... I am embarrassed about them. It's like: 'My diamond shoes are too tight. My money clip doesn't fit all my fifties.' I mean - really. Shut up.
I did a forward roll for the kids the other day, thinking it'd be a breeze like it was when I was six, and I had to lie flat for about 20 minutes afterwards - 'Leave mummy alone; she's feeling a bit dizzy.'
If something touches me, I cry. That's it. I'm a bit raw, a bit rubbish, really. Often, a director will say to me, 'I don't think this is a scene where your character cries.' And all I can say is, good luck with that!
I want to be helpful to the charities I support. I think you can dilute it, the more you do. You have to be a bit strong about what you do... otherwise, you risk spreading yourself a bit thin, and you can be less useful.
My daughter's still so tiny at the moment; she's just a sweet little meaty thing. But of course, you always think about what you want for them, don't you, and like any parent I want my children to be happy more than anything.
I think a good dollop of sadness is quite a useful thing in comedy sometimes. I think if everyone's happy all the time, it's a bit dull. It's like salt and caramel - you wouldn't imagine they would go well together, but they do.