Feminist, whatever the definition, whatever you call yourself - I am, I'm not - none of us want little girls being forced into early marriage before they're 12.

Actors have this amazing skill - we bond quite quickly but equally we move on quite quickly. There's nothing particularly cold or capricious about it - we're troubadours and lead a troubadour's lifestyle.

A character on a page has to feel real, and for me the greatest fun is if you could gender-swap the role.

I started writing it, because it was seven years ago. But yes, that is the genesis of why I started writing.

I think classes can be the most fun. And if you want to make it a social thing and you want to go with friends, then that's the way to do it.

I think the thing about Anne Boleyn is there is an exotic quality to her. This is a woman who wasn’t raised in the English court. She was in the French court and Hapsburg court. She has a continental exotic quality to her. She’s quite a fiery woman and incredibly intelligent. So I think Anne really stood out – fire and intelligence and boldness – in comparison to the English roses that were flopping around court, she would’ve stood out. And Henry noticed that.

You don't want the men to be written in a three-dimensional way and the women, not.