Boarding school in Tring was a bit of a bubble that burst when I went to Hackney to go to drama school.

I think that period dramas just need zombies.

I can only show what I have received from the characters. That's what's scary because you're never going to be everyone's taste and you don't want to let people down. But, I can only do what I can do.

I think it's probably best to work out in the morning to get it out of the way. My ultimate top tip is to drag yourself, even if you have to roll yourself out of your bed and in to a sit-up - it's really not that bad once you start.

It took me a while to warm to the '20s costumes on 'Downton.' I love it when women accentuate their curves, and that era was all about hiding them. The shapes they wore then were in tune with female empowerment. Cutting off their hair and hiding their busts was a way of saying, 'We're equal to men!'

When you're filming in Russia in Catherine's Palace, and you're in the real place where the Tsar's ball really happened, all those years ago, it does so much of the work for you. It's so vivid. You escape into this different time through the costumes, the sets and the atmosphere.

I really want to play interesting roles, but you want to work, so it's a balancing game.