Deirdre O'Kane

“I could probably die happy with a cheeseboard and a glass of French red wine - that's my idea of a perfect dinner.”

“I was 25 before I joined the world, in my opinion. I was a very late developer, and everything came late.”

“With a new baby, you have a bad day now and again because you're particularly tired, but most of the time, you're fine. You spend a lot of your time trying to figure out how you can get more sleep, but really, you're better off just giving up and admitting that you're not going to, so forget about it.”

“I love motherhood. I certainly wasn't aware of any mothering instincts until I had babies. I wasn't a person who desperately wanted to have kids, but you don't get it until you do it, and, suddenly, this nurturing instinct exists.”

“I can make my living out of Ireland, but the reason I came to London was that I felt I'd gone as far as I could go in Ireland.”

“There's a lot I've missed about living in Ireland. You miss family, particularly when you've got kids.”

“One day I got an invite to help the Christina Noble Foundation, and by this stage, I'd already been talking about her for 10 years. I said 'yes' right away, and that was the first time I met her.”

“I am pretty much as you see me. I don't have deep, dark depths and go home in despair.”

“I kind of flew into a panic that somebody would have already owned the rights, because Christina Noble's life is such a good story. It took us two full years to get Christina to agree and sign the rights.”

“I'm doing my best to be mindful about how I'm living: to be kind and patient, and not to impose a bad mood on somebody else. Being mindful is as good a way to be spiritual as anything else.”

“I have never, ever slept through my child crying unless I have had a sleeping tablet; and I only take a sleeping tablet when I know Steve, my husband, is on duty. We take turns: he does one night, I do the next.”

“I spent seven years in clubs in England, Australia, etc. Not all comedians cross over to sell out in a theatre.”

“I admire Pat Shortt as a businessman. Such acumen is unusual for an entertainer. He did all his own deals. I learnt a lot from Pat when I was on the road with him for a year.”

“Growing up, I was your classic Catholic Irish kid. I went to mass every Sunday. Then in secondary school I went to boarding school, and there was mass seven days a week before breakfast - it may have put me off!”

“I was never very good at being an unemployed actor. I always thought that I should have been doing something pro-active. I was never good at doing juvenile leads. I suppose it's because I have this big sarcastic head on me.”

“I think boarding school does give you an independence.”

“I get a good colour in summer but go really pale in winter, and it genuinely doesn't suit me, as people ask me if I'm ill. As well as making me look a bit better, I often have to be tanned in the middle of winter to do a show or programme, so I've road-tested every fake tan on the market.”

“Filling a theatre like the Olympia or Vicar Street on your own name is a very rewarding moment.”

“Yves Saint Laurent will never go out of business so long as I'm buying mountains of Touche Eclat.”

“It wasn't that I left acting; it's just that I put it aside while I set about becoming a comic.”