A challenge is always important; as an actor, as a human, it's good to face challenges and it's good to push your boundaries.

I never went to stage school or anything like that. It was always plays, productions at school and things like that. The thing for me with acting was it was the only thing I could fully concentrate on. I loved playing sports. I didn't really love studying.

A lot of the time when you're doing your own work, it's all in your own head, which can be frustrating if you're prepping for something, especially an audition where it's all in your brain and you go in and no one else has seen it and you don't really know how it fits.

My job isn't about pursuing fame and then becoming an actor. It's about becoming an actor and if fame follows suit, that's fine.

I did listen to 1920s jazz or Al Johnson and a lot of early singers coming out of England. I would branch out a little bit to get a sense of the world that he might be coming into, in the '30s when jazz was changing.

I like going to see live bands. Live bands can be quite heavy, but I think it's very relaxing at the same time because you feel so happy and chilled-out.

When I'm putting the character together I try to find music that I think fits the character.