Mum wasn't at all religious, but she thought that going to the theatre was as important a ceremonial, communal experience that a person could have.

My real self, the self I have always been from a child, is a loner and nerd, slightly overweight, with a very heavy fringe. That is who I was as a kid. I don't think I will ever be anything other than that.

I went to drama school for three years, and the whole thing there is that hopefully you are introduced to a man called William Shakespeare who is the greatest of all time of all storytelling.

I read a lot of heavy literature when I'm on set, so on holiday I want to indulge in something light-hearted.

I like characters who have faults. I'm drawn to darker people.

I'm deeply ambitious and I always have been.

I don't think I'm curvaceous. It's simply that most other actresses are really, stupidly tiny.

From a very young age, stories fuelled my imagination in the most wonderful way.

The things that prey on my mind in London seem to disappear as soon as I find myself in a different environment. Survival mode kicks in.

My first job was a Greek tragedy, and ever since, one job just seemed to roll onto the next. I've been terribly lucky.

I've had that experience of not liking people very much, but having tremendous respect for them.

I think American guys tend to be a bit more forward, a bit more chatty and open than the Brits. The Brits seem to have a darker sense of humor, though I have met some Americans who have adopted bits of the British dry sense of humor as well.

The main reason I did 'Captain America' was because I wanted to get out of my own head and stop taking my work so seriously.

I loved watching theatre, and film, and television. It was a fantastic outlet and my favourite thing to do. I can't remember the decision. It just felt like a completely natural thing... I just completely felt drawn into it and seduced by it all. I found myself going into it.