A lot of period dramas can appear quite arch to most people, stuffy.

I had a non-existent knowledge of Queen Victoria's early years. Like everyone else, I thought of her as an old lady dressed in black. My mom had told me about her, though, that she had a very loving relationship with Albert, that they had lots of kids, and that he died young.

It's quite hard to faze me. I'm fairly un-shockable.

I would love to be on Broadway!

The performances I enjoy are the ones that are hard to read or ambiguous or left-of-centre because it makes you look closer and that's what humans are like - quite mysterious creatures, hard to pinpoint.

The more we mask ourselves, the freer we're able to be within ourselves.

I'm such a diva on set.