Imelda Staunton

“There are lots of wonderful actors doing animated films these days, but I prefer it when you can't recognise them - it means they've really become the character.”

“If you're at an award ceremony, you're against your mates.”

“I was brought up a Catholic, so I take no pleasure in guilt.”

“I adore Bette Davis and Vivien Leigh, but more because they were good actresses. That's what makes me interested in them, that they didn't present themselves as idols; they were just doing their jobs.”

“You can only do your best. That's all you can do. And if it isn't good enough, it isn't good enough.”

“Both my parents had heart problems: my mother had type 2 diabetes, and my father had a stroke.”

“The one good thing is that I get a lot more good scripts coming through my letterbox. 'Vera Drake' raised my profile in one way, and then 'Harry Potter' in another.”

“I worked in rep for six years, then I came to London and to the National Theatre. What's better than that?”

“You can be very famous without being a great actress, and that's not good for me.”

“A lot of me is very up, and you have to have light and shade. They are both important and you have to be able to balance them. You have to admit that sadness is part of you and that it enriches you. I use it in my work.”

“I've always liked new writing.”

“I think the first 10 years of my daughter's life were my mother's happiest, because she could finally have carefree time with a kid.”

“You read about poor people having Botox go wrong and you think: 'Well, what the bloody hell were you doing?' Why would you inject yourself with poison? And why are we spending so much time looking at ourselves? I just don't get it.”

“We all must support the arts, as it is our culture. It makes us better people. It makes us happy; it gives us empathy and shows us how to live. It is so important.”

“Her death has had a huge effect on me. It felt like a big hole appeared on my left side - apparently your left side is your mother - which I thought could never be filled. Now I think what you have to do is fill it with yourself because your mother is part of you. I'm easing into that space, using it and being comforted by it.”

“We're in a world that celebrates things: success, beauty, money. And I reckon that's really about 4 per cent of the world. The rest of us are just getting on with it.”

“To me, it's really not about how I look - it's about who I can be. It is my job to bring the character to life and my duty to fit into the jigsaw in that story.”

“We're all unique as actors. To yourself, you are unique. You have to think, 'I'm me. I'm not going to bunch myself with other people.' Agents and producers have to get you into a box to accommodate their limited imaginations.”

“I don't think it's that I don't like Sondheim. It's that I find it really... I don't know how to describe it. Doing it is the most extraordinary thing. Because it's like Shakespeare times 100 with singing. It's that satisfying - and that demanding.”

“Children should always be brave and do something about bullying. It's not okay to stand by and let it happen. Bullies thrive off secrecy. Children should tell someone if they see someone being bullied.”