I believe in sex on a first date. Otherwise, how do you know if a second date is worth the effort?

It's a very generous culture, American culture. I know you can't generalize 300 million people, but everyone I've met here has been so lovely to me.

I don't think they're more temperamental people now. With social media we hear a lot more about it. The nastiness you get online, there were always mean girls - always - they didn't have such a big forum as they do now. Mean girls ought to get a life, I think.

I love getting presents. And awards. I'd do whatever they told me to do.

I'm in fact Australian but my mother's English so I've got no problem playing a domineering English woman.

When you get as old as I am, you kind of believe there's nothing new under the sun, but there's always a fresh way of looking at something. That's why I love working with young people. They remind you of things you used to know and have since forgotten.

It's fascinating. It's also exhilarating when you see people making the exact same choices that you've made. It kind of validates what you've decided to do. I saw a wonderful production of Jessica Lange doing Streetcar with Alec Baldwin. It was gorgeous. It's a measure of what a great classic that is, that our Cate Blanchett also did an absolute amazing Blanche in Sydney, as well as in New York.