A lot of my friends are artists or musicians or single parent families and I'm totally aware of how difficult it is for them to make ends meet.

I was always embarrassed because my dad wore a suit and my mother wore flat pumps and a cozy jumper while my friends' parents were punks or hippies.

I say embrace the total geek in yourself and just enjoy it. Life is too short to be cool.

I'm 41, I'm a woman, not a kid. I have no interest in making silly pop music.

Here am I. I'm 38. My career's probably never been better. And I've made a decision which may or may not impact on it - I refuse to hide my experience and my age, as if it's something I should be ashamed of. I'm alive. I know lots of people who've never been lucky enough to get to this stage in their life. And I'm not gonna hide it for anybody.

I was a redhead and a middle child; both can make you feel excluded. It's like fighting to be included, in the swim of things. After a while you start to develop a bit of a victim mentality, which isn't great for a happy life.

The truth is, I've always been wracked with self-loathing and terrible, paralysing depression.