I have had the most wonderful childhood, and I was raised in a very loving family. And it was nothing short of an amazing privilege because I was incredibly lucky to be able to play up in trees and make it like silly dens in a bush and stuff like that.
Rose Leslie
I wish I were as tough and strong as the women that I'm lucky enough to portray.
You always try to play it off cool, but even if I think I have a certain laidback body language when I'm meeting someone who I greatly admire, I still have this horrible tendency to go bright red.
Working on 'Honeymoon,' an independent movie, was almost like working on TV with the space, and everything was stripped down - costume and hair and makeup. There was very little to hide behind, and you absolutely had to create the character from within.
First and foremost, Scotland is my home, and I do consider myself Scottish, but I also feel very British, and I hope that Scotland stays within the Union. I have a real concern about independence.
I remember bossing my younger siblings around and making them put on shows and skits with me.
I do love archery in my day-to-day life because I find it very therapeutic, and I've trained every season with the bow and arrow.
I was lucky enough to get into drama school in London back in 2005, and I was there for three years, and in those three years, we did a lot of theater. A lot of classical training.
I think it's important to change and not be associated with your character too much.
Certainly part of being from a big family is that you have to shout to make yourself heard.
I'm doing a bit of theatre: I'm doing a Mike Bartlett play called 'Contractions.' I'm very, very happy and lucky to be going back to the stage.
My elder brother and sister were both sporty and academic, and I think, subconsciously, I knew I couldn't go down that avenue.
I didn't get into university, so I had to go to drama college!
I like to think that I can run, but I remember once running up and down through different terrains while on set in Iceland, and I face planted.
I had worked in TV prior to working on 'Game of Thrones' - 'Game of Thrones' is far more cinematic than any other television show that I had done before, and so I feel that the worlds of TV and film are most definitely merging as one.
With 'Game of Thrones' you're not really dealing with anything that is based in reality. You have dragons and magic and all of that.
The gap between film and TV is narrowing, and that's great for us all.
My parents live there, and I was born and raised in Scotland. I lived there for the first 11 years of my life, until my parents decided to take our family to France where we lived for a couple of years. We then moved back to Scotland, and that is where I feel most home - where I come back to myself, and I love more than I can say.
The phenomenon that is 'Game Of Thrones' has propelled many actors associated with it into the minds of directors and producers, and it's a fabulous position to be in. It's because it's so adored and respected, of such high quality with such amazing cinematography.
I've played American characters before, so I've naturally become more at ease. Still, there are some American words that I cannot get my tongue around, but if you keep it flowing, you are never too far away from the truth.
Mum and Dad paid me 50 pence, which was a lot of money when I was 8 years old, not to dye my hair.
People say how come I'm from Scotland yet I sound like the Queen?! I went to boarding school in Somerset, which has probably got something to do with it.
I taught myself to listen and kind of regurgitate what I was surrounded by, and it's been a wonderful tool to have as an actor.
For a 'GOT' premiere, I wore a white dress by Antonio Berardi, which fitted beautifully. And I felt empowered by the Jenny Packham gown I wore for 'The Last Witch Hunter' premiere. That is the beauty of the designer - to help a woman or man feel that way.
It is so inspirational, to see that in the world of Westeros, men are answering to women, and they are a force to be reckoned with. It's empowering, and it's inspirational as well, because you're just like, 'This is great!'
Now that I know how to handle a bow and arrow, I find it very therapeutic. It is a brilliant way to ease your mind, so I am going to keep it up in my free time. It is a very fun skill to have.
'Luther' is raw and brutal like 'Game Of Thrones,' but it's coincidence. If I'm drawn to anything, it would be the writing. Choosing a project is an organic process where I'm taken in by the character and storyline, not the genre, whether fantasy or gritty and raw.
It's a wonderful thing to have a character with tons of attributes.
I never wanted to be a ginger.
The universe is so enormous, and we have no idea what's on the other side of the galaxy. It's a lovely thing to be able to tap into. I'm definitely not opposed to any supernatural ideas, but I've never encountered any. I believe in spirits, but I've never seen a ghost. And I believe in Heaven and Hell.
From a young age, I wanted to differentiate myself from my older siblings.
With 'Honeymoon,' it was so intimate, and we literally shot it in something like 20, 24 days. Everything was very rapid and very fast, and so all of us submerged into the deep end and only really came up for air once we had wrapped.
I was so fortunate; in the years that I was in 'Thrones,' we were able to shoot in Iceland. I think some of my favourite memories would have to be isolated out there, surrounded by nothing but snow and ice.
I am a huge box sets fan and love a Sunday marathon session watching my favourite series back-to-back.
It's kind of ridiculous, but I hate creepy crawlers. Like centipedes. It's just the fact that they have so many legs! I am not great with spiders either. That absolutely creeps me out.
I know my beliefs. I know where I stand on issues and concerns, and I feel that there is the right platform to tackle those concerns. And if you're lucky enough to have a voice on something you have knowledge, then speak your mind, but only really for things for which you have an input.
Mum and Dad sent us to a bilingual school, so we had half the lessons in English and half in French. But I remember being hugely lost.
It's nice to get my teeth into something that isn't a stereotypical female role.
When I left 'Downton Abbey,' it hadn't yet taken off and become the phenomenon that it is, to this day. That all happened after I left. But, it was fabulous to be a part of it and to be a part of the cast. We had an absolute ball!
I certainly relate to Ygritte in the fact that she is so strong and also ruthless as well and I feel that especially within 'Game of Thrones,' I think that as a show, it is one of the frontrunners for showing dominant female characters and making sure that men answer to women rather than the other way around.
I had the most fantastic time filming 'Downton.'
I definitely think it opened doors for me and what was so fantastic about 'Downton' being showed over in the States, was that it helped get me noticed.
For the first time in my life I tried whale. It was very chewy and quite fatty. My friend had had whale before, so I knew it would be quite blubbery. It was delicious. I loved it. It was smoked, so it had a lovely kind of tangy taste to it. We had it a couple of nights. I was won over. It was very yummy.
I remember loving 'Braveheart,' and I still do! It was one of those films my family had on video and we watched over and over again.
I loved my experience on 'Downton Abbey.' We shot it in six months, and it was the first time I'd ever been on TV, and I was surrounded by my friends. It was a wonderful, wonderful time.
The honeymoon phase always ends, for everyone.
I believe that we're not alone. How can we be alone in an infinite universe? I'm using the word 'alien' with a little trepidation because I know that sparks so many different versions of that word, and there are so many different images that come into one person's head when someone says it.
I have always been a big fan of the BBC program 'Luther' with Idris Elba.
Going into auditions, there is a wonderful butterfly feeling in your stomach - an equal balance of being utterly terrified and exhilarated that this is your chance.
With big productions, you can sometimes get lost with the terminology and all the different departments.
