When I got into the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, a doctor told me to give up the course as I'd be totally deaf within a couple of years. But I refused to give in.

I'm the one by the backdoor - I am not the one in the middle of the party.

I think the deafness affects me more than I realise I think it makes me more tired. I loathe parties. I attend, smile and leave.

I'm lucky that most of the time I'm on location in amazing places. Most of the time, I don't need holidays, I just stop working.

We all live in fear of cancer, but to be told you have skin cancer was terrifying.

When I was young I used to smother myself with olive oil mixed with a dash of vinegar to keep the flies away and lay in the sunshine for hours on end. But we knew no better then. Now we know how stupid that was.

Nothing is going to improve my hearing. I've only got to prevent it from getting worse.