I know some actresses who used to be older than me who are now younger than me - I don't know how they do it.

I was always very determined, as was my husband, that we wouldn't let any of our children act when they were young.

Listening to my regular favourites - Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms and so on - I always feel, quite misguidedly, that nothing can be too bad if such beauty and brilliance exists in the world.

Of all the things I do, acting is the thing that grabs most, but there's another level on which it strikes me as being a little silly. In the end you're dressing up and deciding to be somebody.

I think all good writing is a struggle. To write as well as you feel you can has to be a struggle, almost by definition, because you could always improve.

I swim more or less every day.

I don't agree with the whole 'my mother's my friend' approach, because you're their mum and there has to be a difference between the generations.