I couldn't handle the rules the Queen has to live by at all, and very few of us could. It's a golden cage, really. You're never alone in that role - you are always surrounded by security.

Any role that's proactive is a great role, and action roles are by their very nature proactive. You get to do stuff. I hate sitting in a corner - I'd much prefer an action role in a popcorn movie rather than pining in a corner not doing anything.

I don't share lots of the phobias that horror movies tap into. I don't mind spiders or snakes or darkness.

My parents believed in education and economic security, and I thank them for it. Because I think that's part of what's made my life stable. It was instilled in me. You have to be able to pay your bills. You do not get into debt. And I never have been.

I don't throw a lot of parties. I find throwing parties a bit intimidating.

I think a lot of my work has been a weird attempt to liberate myself, but it's not altogether successful.

Southend is a dormitory town for London. But it also had this thing of being the playground of the East End - a glamorous holiday town.