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'm not in the Lifetime Achievement area yet-I'm still battling it out in the trenches.

It's vital to have your own space so you aren't constantly in each other's pockets.

The best research for playing a drunk is being a British actor for 20 years.

I have a knack of making villainous people a little bit sympathetic, a bit of fun on screen.

I regard myself as someone who is retired but who occasionally goes out to work. In fact, I'm offered so much good stuff that it's not so occasional.

Anyone can write. But comedy, you've got to do some writing. You get one comedy script to every 20 dramas.