I spent 30 years of my life not being wanted at all for films.

I am a great admirer of other actors, but I never compete with other actors. I always compete with what I did last, and I'm my own most vicious critic. So I'm always trying to do it better.

I heard my first laughter on stage, when I was about 10 years old. It was gold pantomime and I remember I was playing Baron Fitznoodle, who was the father of the ugly sisters in "Cinderella." And I walked on and got a great big laugh and I thought that was fantastic, until I looked down and found that my flies were open. And so I always check my flies. I even check my flies on radio.

Not only is acting more than a part-time job, it's more than a full-time job. It's a full-time obsession.

I don't meet stockbrokers or carpenters or coal miners; I spend all day with actors, composers and photographers.

For all my education, accomplishments, and so called 'wisdom'... I can't fathom my own heart.

Growing up, there was only classical music on BBC Radio. We had to listen to the American Forces Network in Germany, which played pop songs, or the pirate radio boats off the coast.