Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
Every girl wants to play Bridget Jones.
I suffer a lot with nerves and stage fright.
I'm just some commoner trying to work in acting.
I'd like to rescue people in trouble, like Superman.
I'm normally a burger and chips girl - such a cheap date.
I prefer theatre to television - you get to feel the love.
I don't mind being unlikely. I'd rather that than be predictable.
I'm always wearing Spanx, eating ice cream and feeling a bit lonely.
I pull my eyelashes when I'm tired or thinking - it's a nervous thing.
I really fancy Eddie Redmayne. I wouldn't mind a few steamy scenes with him.
My brother is the lead singer of The Torn, and my parents are in a country duo.
I certainly never get above my station - my family would soon slap me back down to earth.
I don't usually get to play sophisticated women. I usually do the old scrubs, chavs or slappers.
People can never work out where they know me from. They just come up and chat with me like mates.
I have angel wings and a halo on my wrist, which I got done on my 30th birthday in memory of my brother.
I'm such a weirdo. I'm animal-mad, so my ideal date would probably be something involving going to see animals.
When you're hiding behind a character all the time, as soon as you have to be yourself, you feel kind of terrified.
Not having gone to drama school, I always feel like a bit of a fraud, but so far it looks as though I've not been found out.
Maybe I'm going from that tomboy-ish state to feeling a bit more womanly. I've enjoyed wearing some fancy frocks. It's nice once in a while.
I do love Louboutin shoes, but I need to stop buying them because I don't go to many 'dos,' so they just line up. I'm normally in my trainers.
I'm grateful to be working. The most exciting thing for me is that I never get bored - I've done comedy, drama, musical theatre and now Shakespeare.
I did say I don't feel as worthy as so many of the recipients ... He said he'd seen some of my work, which is amazing, and was a fan of Gavin and Stacey.
I've got mates who have got married through meeting on Internet dating sites, so it really can work out - even if sometimes it does go disastrously wrong.
I think the first album I bought was The Jackson Five, but the first CD I was given was 'Cotton-Eyed Joe,' the single! Bless my mum - don't know what she was thinkin'!
I always say to my Twitter followers to come to the stage door and meet me. What I love about being in the theatre, rather than filming, is that you meet your audience.
As a kid, I was a dancer in Dick Whittington, Snow White and Cinderella. When I was 14, I played Baby Bear. I had a big head on, and you couldn't see my face. My mum was very disappointed.
I swore on screen when I got the Olivier for 'Legally Blonde,' I was so surprised. Awards where the public vote mean a lot. I'm a big Twitter fan and like talking to people who support me.
When I was 16, I played Tallulah in 'Bugsy Malone' at the Queen's Theatre. Me and five others shared a flat together in Blackheath. It was brilliant being 16 and living in London with my mates.
On my first TV job I didn't have a clue. They'd tell me to hit my mark and I had no idea what they meant. You just pick it up. And ultimately, all it's really about is pretending to be someone else.
You're used to having a camera in your face when you're playing a character - it's like having a mask on. But when you have to be you, you're so worried you'll make an idiot of yourself. Acting is a kind of escapism.
Appearing in 'Legally Blonde' has helped me find my inner girl, although at the beginning the director was constantly telling me off for sitting like a boy, with my legs apart, while wearing a cocktail dress and heels!
Kathy Burke has been a real inspiration. I think she's brilliant. I like the fact she doesn't care what she looks like on TV and just gets really into character. Obviously, she can do drama as well, but it's her comedy I love.
A lot of young girls who came to see me in 'Legally Blonde' have come to see 'Hedda,' and they hadn't heard of the play either, just like I was before I did it! If I can bring a younger generation to see an Ibsen play; that's just brilliant.
I've been so lucky with the people I've worked with, but I'm such a fan girl. When I moved to London at 16, I saw a man from a Dulux advert on the bus, and I asked for his autograph. I was so excited; you can imagine what I'm like now - I really need to control myself.
I'm really grateful to my parents for having the confidence in me to let me go. I was terrified I might have to slink back to the village with my tail between my legs, and treated every job as though it were my last - I still do - but fortunately, I got work and things seemed to slot into place.
I lack confidence, but I've been so lucky the way jobs have come to me, and I'm so grateful for them. I know how many brilliant actors there are out there who aren't getting the chances. While the work is there, I will grab it with both hands. It could all end tomorrow. You never know what's around the corner.
When I saw 'Legally Blonde' on Broadway, I rang my agent and said 'I want to be seen for this,' but the rest weren't big choices, really. 'Hedda Gabler' was a phone call offering it to me, and as I've said before quite embarrassingly, I didn't know the play, so I didn't sit there thinking 'I would now like to tackle Ibsen.'
I live in Selfridges because it has everything under one roof. Liberty's is great for the same reason - I'm so lazy, I hate walking from shop to shop. Powder in Crouch End always has great designer labels in, so when I walk past I have to put my blinkers on because every time I nip in I come out with too much stuff; it's dangerous.
When a woman gets to 30, you ask her about having kids. I don't mind - all my friends are settled with kids, so I can understand people asking, and I even get it from relatives, but I'd be a fool to miss these work opportunities. And there's no time limit. One day I'll find my prince, but at the minute, I'm enjoying kissing a few frogs.