I started writing sketches with Dennis Kelly, who I ended up writing 'Pulling' with. We entered a BBC competition and did quite well, then started writing bits for other people's shows. You wheedle your way in, write pilots and eventually you end up writing a sitcom.

At 27 or so I thought, you know, I actually do really want to make money and have a proper life, and I don't want to be a loser. I know! I'll go to university and get a proper degree and maybe get a job in media... I went and did an English degree.

I'm a massive scaredy cat. I'm scared of being in a fast car, I'm scared of being on a rollercoaster, I would never go skiing, I would never do anything that had the possibility of endangering my life in any way. I should get some therapy, really.

It's always uneven, love; it's unbalanced and it's obviously even worse when it comes to someone wanting to part from someone who isn't willing to. It's often feeling hurt that you've never felt before and you want somebody else to feel that pain and also not wanting to let go, because when you let go you've got to start living your life again and it consumes people.

Comedy is helping a lot at the moment. It also seems to be getting under Trump's skin and revealing a lot about the kind of thin-skinned fool that he is.

You feel you can pretend to be young until you're 50, but after that, what happens and how do you approach it?

You've only got a short shelf-life as an actor, and I want to make the most of it while I can.