I genuinely was just such a fan of the books. When I heard that this was on the cards, I've got to do this; I've got to get involved with this. I'm such a Philip Pullman fan and actually his philosophies, morals and the way he looks at the world. He does what he does brilliantly as a writer. He writes children's stories with major adult themes and major ideas about making the right choices.

Intimate scenes on a movie set are just dry, bizarre things; people standing around.

I'm not James Bond. There's your headline! It's very clear to me that he's the furthest from my character that it's possible to be. It's somebody I play.

Action movies live and die by the story that you're trying to tell. It's hard. It's very difficult to do an action movie that stays engaging.

I've always loved to dress up a bit and show off.

My mother gave me a real kick toward cooking, which was that if I wanted to eat, I'd better know how to do it myself.

Although I'm not from London originally: I moved down here when I was 16, so it's played a part in my life. It's where I've lived for all that time.