James Nesbitt

“If you are going to tell a story about a child going missing, it's going to have similarities with a real life child going missing.”

“I do commercials, but I also go to Sudan as an ambassador for UNICEF.”

“I'm increasingly realising our consciousness and subconsciousness are extremely different, and our subconsciousness motivates us, but so far, I don't know what drove or motivates me.”

“Something about theatre perhaps scared me.”

“I've never felt that acting was my vocation - never had that tortured thing. I love acting, but it doesn't feed my soul.”

“You can get a bit world-weary in this job, and 'The Passion' reminded me of what a fantastic job acting is and how lucky I am to be doing it.”

“There's no such thing as unwanted attention for an actor.”

“I thought I was God's gift to mankind and the greatest Irishman since George Best.”

“When you see a tumour in the brain, it's an ugly looking thing. It's kind of black, grisly and messy. Or it can be white. To see it taken away is just amazing.”

“I've always been a family man and count myself as one of those who are lucky to have the comfort of a family.”

“My mother certainly doesn't think I'm charming!”

“I am in the public eye, and I accept that my actions may be open to question.”

“Because I grew up with women, I have a certain amount of charm, and I'm all right to get on with, kind enough, funny enough, blah blah blah.”

“My preference is for good writing. It doesn't matter if it's for film or TV. Whatever. It starts with the writing. Even though I've had problems with writers, it doesn't matter how great of an actor you are. If the writing is bad, you're going to struggle.”

“I spend an awful lot of time by myself and enjoy that.”

“My wife is a very strong woman.”

“As I flew back from New Zealand to bury my mother, it occurred to me that no matter how harrowing her loss was and how keenly it will always be felt, there was, nevertheless, a sense of relief that my father, sisters and I could say a final goodbye after the longest goodbye and relief that my mum had finally been released.”

“Theatres, along with the likes of the Ulster Orchestra, for example, are the cultural heartbeats of our towns and cities, and without them, we are much poorer for it.”

“People love watching medical dramas - they also love watching documentaries about the workings of the brain.”

“Brain surgeons are dealing with the very last thread of life, and they have to be very confident, but I think they tend to remember their failures rather than their successes, and that must be very hard. Who do you share that failure with? That's why their personal lives are often disastrous.”