I came out of my mum's stomach going, 'I want to be an actor!'

Drama school is fundamentally practical. I didn't write any essays, so I came out with a BA honors degree in acting.

One of the many things I love about Daenerys from Game of Thrones is she's given me an opportunity to fly the flag for young girls and women, to be more than just somebody's wife and somebody's girlfriend.

I grew up around horses, but acting and riding on camera is a whole different thing.

My mother taught me how to apply my own makeup at 13 years old, and the most important lesson I learned is to never touch my eyebrows and to cleanse, tone, and moisturize twice a day.

There are no captions on red-carpet photos that say, 'This girl trained for two weeks, she went on a juice diet, she has a professional hair and makeup person, and this dress was made for her.' I just wish they'd say, 'It ain't the truth.'

You can't come out of drama school and think, 'It's all going to be amazing.' You have to expect to work in a bar for at least five years and be a waitress for maybe two!