I have always been interested in gender politics, so I'm not that keen on doing things that don't represent a truth about women.

Female ambition is such a complicated thing to play because it is an aggressive quality, and people respond very badly to women exhibiting any kind of aggression.

I would like to know that I was still going to be employed as a woman well into my 60s. In acting terms, a career that spans a lifetime is a very hard thing to achieve, particularly as a woman.

I get grumpy about the innate conservatism of our tastes; I love bold theatre, and I get annoyed when a heritage piece is really successful.

I just don't believe you're capable of being an actor unless you have a desire to experience your emotions in a public way.

I don't really want to do things that I feel like are going to send out a message that I don't really want to sign up for.

I think if I was ever really going to be more serious about writing I'd have to try and find some way to do it with other people. I do find the silence kind of eerie.