Now, what sort of person would write a scene where a young man stumbles upon a castle full only of beautiful young women? Answer: ME!

I cut down trees, I skip and jump, I like to press wild flowers. I put on women's clothing and hang around in bars.

There is nothing better than playing a scene with John Cleese or Maggie Smith. It's electric. But I don't think I'm the sort of person who needs to have an outer ego in order to produce something. I realised that through the travel programmes.

Contrary to what the politicians and religious leaders would like us to believe, the world won't be made safer by creating barriers between people.

If I am seen as successful, it's all the more reason not to change - not to lose track of friends, not to be driven everywhere, not to go and get away from the world. That, to me, is real success: enjoying what you do, but being the same person.

As I work in the afternoon on committing to paper some of my morning's thoughts, I find myself just about to close on the knotty question of whether or not I believe in God. In fact I am about to type, 'I do not believe in God', when the sky goes black as ink, there is a thunderclap and a huge crash of thunder and a downpour of epic proportions. I never do complete the sentence.

I mistrust total competence. I've always felt life is a series of small disasters we try to get through.