I'm obsessed with subtexts. I love that we often don't say what we feel. That gap between the two. I like it when actors reveal a lot without having to say it.

I think, as an actor, you're always traveling. There's a sense of dislocation sometimes from home.

Any creative process comes with a level of self-analysis and self-criticism. There's a lot of waking up in the middle of the night going, 'Oh, I wish I had done that differently.'

With every film that you do, you're always so nervous. You feel exposed because you know people will see this eventually. You sort of have to put all that out of your head. What will be will be. But it's nerve wracking.

I think the writing skills of actors are sometimes underestimated.

My mother worked in advertising and my father was a journalist. But they split up when I was three and I grew up in a single-parent family. My mum brought my brother and I up.

My agent called me up and said, 'There is a tremendous female lead in the new 'Star Wars' film, and I think you're really going to like it.' The opportunity to play someone determined, who's trying to find her skills as a leader; to be in a fantasy movie; to be able to do a leading female role in a film of that scale - that's very, very rare.

As a child, I always liked dressing up and getting into character, and actors are lucky in being able to retain that playfulness, though we do seem to find it hard to grow up.

I don't think my parents would have let me go straight into acting full time when I was 12. I do like to have balance, naturally, as an individual.

I always wear the shoes of the character a week before going on set; the idea of just putting on a new pair of shoes on the first day of filming is just horrific.

A fashion show is like a 10-minute play, but there's all this anticipation; Everyone arriving, finding their seats, then there's 10 minutes of people walking past and clothes and music, then the whole thing is finished.

The key is working with great directors. A film is so many different people and all their talents, but particularly the directors, because of the idiosyncrasies of that person.

I'm used to doing independent film where the style is a lot more casual. With improvising, you obviously find so much out on the day - and in a way, I feel more comfortable doing that.

I actually studied literature at university, so I'm much more of an arts-based person, but I remember I actually did enjoy physics because you got to do weird experiments. I remember we did this thing with static where we all had to put our hands on this static ball to see that your hair would all stand on end.

She was obsessed with French and Swedish cinema. I also remember our mother showing us 'Gone With the Wind' very early on. She absolutely loved Vivien Leigh, so it must have been a formative experience for me, thinking, 'Oh, maybe one day I'll be like Vivien Leigh.'

I would describe my look as 'ladylike rock chick.'

I love going swimming. I spent a lot of time in North London in summer going to Hampstead Heath and swimming in the ponds there. It's so beautiful; we're so lucky to have that in London.

My grandmother has dementia, and my mother is looking after her as her primary caregiver. Seeing their relationship has had a profound impact, seeing how tough it is for both of them and seeing how the roles change and how my mother has gone from being a daughter to being the mother.

You have to have a bag of Yorkshire Tea bags. It is the best tea that England has to offer, and that comes with me everywhere I go.

Without sounding too pretentious, I feel my job is almost like becoming a monk or a nun - it's a calling.

I would be writing an essay that was due in the next day until about 1 A.M., and then I would be up at 6 A.M. and on a train to Birmingham to record 'The Archers'. It was pretty intense.

I've always been a feminist, and what I love in my work is being able to explore a full-sided woman and not patronize her.

It's funny how seeing a love story never gets boring, because it's the dream, isn't it? It's the dream to have a true connection with another human being.

I always love listening to Bob Dylan. 'Blood on the Tracks' is one of my favorite albums.

I'm very excited that I can get on a skateboard and skateboard down the street now. That was something I never thought I'd be able to do. I conquered my fears.

It is disheartening when you read an interview with an actress, and it starts by describing what she is wearing.

I hardly ever watch the news... I love reading newspapers, but I know they're dying out.

I have a great plain blue shirt from APC, and a denim one from Dolce that I wear constantly. It's hard to find the perfect denim shirt, but this is it.

I think human nature is eternal and constant.

I learnt circus skills in drama group, so I can juggle.

The more you work, the more people can see that you're something different from what's come before.