Felicity Kendal

“When I was little I always thought I was marked out, special, on the verge of something momentous. I used to tingle with anticipation.”

“It's nice not to have lines when you frown, especially on TV. I don't know why people make such a fuss about it. No one is interested if a woman has her teeth capped or her hair dyed.”

“There is the most wonderful thing called Polaris: it's a very high frequency laser treatment that lifts and tightens the skin.”

“It's difficult to say what attracts one person to another. It's always a combination, isn't it? I've always found people interesting because of the way they think, and a sense of humour is irresistible.”

“I hope to start enjoying flirting again when I'm 70, like my mother did.”

“I think in the acting world you either manage that transition to older roles, or you stick with what you've always done and then discover nobody can bear you doing it as an older person.”

“It was in India that I started my acting career, courtesy of my parents, long before I set foot on stage in England. They headed a company of travelling players performing Shakespeare up and down the land.”

“I am used to looking good. In a way, if I thought I looked like the back end of a bus, I probably wouldn't have done 'Strictly Come Dancing' and gone out there in public.”

“I don't think, until you've actually lost somebody you really love, that you can go through that door that allows you to be grown-up.”

“We take ourselves so seriously moment by moment, but India shows you a sense of eternity. You're one little ant on a hill. You're part of life, but you're not the whole thing.”

“After making my stage debut aged nine as Macduff's small son in 'Macbeth,' I had played a number of parts, from 'Twelfth Night's Viola to 'The Merchant Of Venice's Portia'.”

“I do still get the odd fan letter about The Good Life, clearly written by somebody aged 18, who says: Will you send a photograph? And I think: Maybe it's kinder not to. I'm deeply into my 50s now.”

“From the early days of the Raj, Shakespeare had been woven into the fabric of India's education, and my father understood that in a culture rich with storytelling and fantastical tales, Shakespeare's characters and storylines resonated in a powerful way.”

“I don't treasure things much - just people. And pets.”

“I have to say I am a 'Strictly' fan, which is why I am in it. I've always watched it for years. I am not an 'X Factor' fan, and I just think it is a different show. One is about learning something new and having a great time, and the other is rather desperate.”

“The girl-next-door image is a sort of joke; for years, I couldn't get any roles other than as somebody dark.”

“The gym is where I get my chill-out time. I try to go six days a week, but when I'm working, that goes down to about three.”

“I can be very difficult if people are not professional, or lazy - or the opposite, which is take themselves too seriously.”

“When I was much younger, I sometimes felt rejected by feminists because of an image that I sold because it paid the bills. Any fool could tell my hair is dyed.”

“I don't think I've ever not had a dark side. But one of the wonderful reasons why you go into this business is that half your life you live in a fantasy, which is somebody else's life. It's actually a great release because you're not having to deal with the itty-bitty bits of life.”