The thing a drama school can't give you is instinct. It can sharpen instinct but that can't be taught, and you have to have intuition. It's an essential ingredient.

I like a cheese and pickle. Nice cheese and pickle on a real old-fashioned bread. Ploughman's lunch.

Being a good director is knowing sometimes when not to say something.

Political correctness has become a straightjacket.

What other people think of me is none of my business.

To be able to do this job in the first place you've got to have a bit of an ego.

You take what you know, and you put it through your own prism. If I play characters that break down or cry, it's Gary Oldman crying; it's not the character crying.