There's something inherently comic about the fact that politicians make things worse by worrying too much about something.

Listening to classical music is a journey not a state; it's an activity not a meditation.

As a gut thing, my next project is always the complete opposite of the thing I've just done. So if I've spent a lot of time doing film, I might then do some radio.

I always think you've just got to move on. If you keep wallowing in the thing that you've done for a while you get a bit stale.

It's still very relevant to how politics works within government, but in terms of the way into politics for an outsider, no, I don't think that would work. I don't know what would, other than... people are going online, and finding the single issue topics. I mean, look at the junior doctors' strike at the moment, or benefit cuts. That sort of cut across parties, and real pressure was felt in the government from inside and out.

It almost seems like anyone who doesn't seem political in any way is at an advantage. It's almost like anti-politics. A stage where anyone who acts - and it is an act - as if they have nothing to do with the way that daily politics works is lauded as some kind of superstar human being.

What's funny about that office is it's entirely dependent on how close you are to the president, because the president decides what your role will be. If you get on with the president, that's great; if you fall out with the president, power can go away.