'Unforgotten' was a bit of a no-brainer. I'm a big fan of crime dramas, but often the 'investigation' part goes much too smoothly - and you don't get that with this.

Two of my dramas, 'Unforgotten' and 'River,' were airing at the same time, and Dad had read about my 'success' in a newspaper - he thought it was brilliant. I was thinking, 'Does this mean I'm going to be put in a box for a bit now?'

In this industry, people like to look at different faces on their screens - even I do.

Filming in London is brilliant.

My whole family were from the East End, but they moved away when I was a child. They still cannot get their heads around the fact that I ran back to London as soon as I could, when I was 21.

I was always about working. I like working. I don't like being unemployed. I love acting.

Yes, I go a little bit crazy when I'm not working, which is an issue for me. My background is you go to work; that's what you do.

I can't tell you the excitement to be in a new TV series or a play you've got to read for. That's the best.

I found myself at Cambridge, loved my course, and met these amazing people who got me heavily involved. I presumed I would have to go to drama school, but I did a play with my uni friends, who were doing lots of pub theatre in London, and through that met my agent. She said 'Don't go to drama school. I'll get you a job' and two weeks later she did.

The confidence and charisma it takes to stand up in front of a group of children absolutely terrifies me.

You just have to look at me to know what I am feeling. So I would be a useless policewoman or spy.

You can't escape your face.

I've got a feisty face.

We lived in so many flats, and the more people you could get, the cheaper the flat was. Someone was always sleeping in the living room, and you're always slightly hiding them when the landlord came round.

I'd be an absolutely appalling detective... Appalling.

Roast potatoes - I can't say no. At Christmas, I reach over for the fifth or sixth one, and I think I could keep going until I explode.

Breakfast is a battle. I never feel like eating, but I have now found my way to porridge. I have it with full-fat milk and banana.

As I get older, I get happier.

I'd do anything with Tom Courtenay.

We bought a sofa with the money I made from 'Thunderbirds,' and I've still got it, and we call it Thunderbird 1. That's literally all I got out of the job.

When you're working, you're in the present, but you've always got one eye on where your next job might be coming from, and I don't think that will ever go away.

There are a lot of women - directors, producers, writers - involved in my career. They are all interested in telling good stories, and good stories involve men and women.

I just want to carry on doing high-quality work.

High-end divorce is a closed world. When I tried to research it, I was really surprised about how little there is out there. I think that's because of the nature of the subject matter - privacy is incredibly important to this level of client.