Every job still feels like the first time.
I think, as a woman, you've got to make so many sacrifices.
I watch 'Take Me Out' mainly for Paddy McGuinness. When we were younger, we worked together as lifeguards at the Bolton Leisure Centre.
We still have an underclass in this country who are constantly ignored and vilified.
If I feel like if there's a few too many people on that path with me, then I want to jump off and find another one.
They always said to me that I needed to be more feminine. I think it's so wrong. Being boisterous doesn't mean you are not feminine.
Often, when I am playing difficult roles, I have a problem sleeping because I can't leave the character behind.
I care about my work, but I don't care about getting it wrong. The more you do, the more you realise nobody's going to die.
I think an actor's process should be very personal and private, and sometimes I have thought, 'Oh, please, put it away now.'
I've always fancied being a bit of warrior, on a horse swinging a sword around, sorting out the men... Oh yes, that sounds lovely.
I get very irate with actors when they talk about how distressing it all is. I mean, it's only acting. Please.
I love hoovering. People go to therapists; I've got a Hoover.
For me, I'm still always that kid from Bolton.
I don't have massive ambitions to be anywhere other than in this country doing good work.
I'm always an advocate of 'acting is reacting,' which can be difficult.
I am an actor. I love acting, and I absolutely love what I do, but I don't want it to be every waking hour.
The films, the music, the telly that I like is always a little bit more on the margins.
It's great having time to just sit back and work through things in my mind. It helps put life into perspective.
I actually used to compete at show-jumping when I was a young'un.
I have recurring dreams about losing my temper, which become quite violent. I dread to think what that says about me.
Sometimes it feels like the feminist movement never happened.
I get angry about the way women are forced and bullied into what the male ideal is.
I left the North when I was 21 to go to drama school in London, and I stayed there 12 years.
I'm not a fan of reality TV.
Generally, I am losing faith in telly, as we do have good dramas but not as many as there should be.
I must admit I don't usually buy a daily paper, although I will get one if there's an interview I want to read.
There aren't that many great female roles in Shakespeare - none that I'd be desperate to play.
Male? Female? It's not always relevant to some people. They are who they are - they might not fit into a specific box.
As I've got older, I've got slightly more fussy. You've got less time; you need to use it wisely.
People will always respond to high-class drama.
