My nickname is Bondy. But not because of the Bond films - it was my surname a long time before I did those.

Agatha Christie holds special personal memories for me because my mum, a television producer called Pat Sandys, had been the first person to persaude the Agatha Christie estate to put one of her stories on TV.

I get so nervous before I go on stage that I can never eat very much, so I'm always completely starving afterwards and dying for a bowl of pasta.

My best friend is my husband.

Not a lot of people know this, but I'm very good at mathematics. When I was an angry teenager, I used to sit in my room and do quadratic equations to calm myself down.

It's one of the oldest theatrical adages: never work with children or animals.

I tend to opt for relaxed family holidays when I can.