To be honest, you have to do a big Hollywood film to get enough money to do a good independent film!

I'm still Sean that me mates went to school with, not Sean the film star. And that's the way I prefer to be.

I put quite a few trees in last autumn. A lot of silver birch and a couple of native trees - just generally doing gardening, putting plants in and hedges in. It takes quite a lot of time and I love it.

Lord of the Rings was something I always wanted to do. I read the book when I was about 25, and I was always hoping if it was ever made into a feature film that I would be involved in some way. And then I finally got it, and I was over the moon. It was fantastic news.

I'd been trying for a while to get parts that weren't just the English bad guy, so it was quite refreshing to be playing someone who was a compassionate, decent guy.

I sometimes find that playing the bad guy, or villains, or psychopaths tend to be much more psychologically rewarding. And you can really push it, you can push the limits, and get away with it.

You've only got to walk into a pub or a café or anything and you'll find people talking about topics they're very unhappy with. You feel as though things are being eroded and people don't know where they belong anymore.