Quotes

Sadly, my father died before I graduated, so he didn't see any of the success at all.

I am not much of a TV addict, and if I have a day off, and I'm pottering around at home, I will always listen to Radio 4.

I worry about the world.

I spend long days wearing a corset - but no pain, no gain.

Normally I will have five or six cups of tea a day, and if I can have them poured from a teapot, then all the better. I think tea tastes so much nicer from a pot.

Working is a great distraction technique.

I don't think you can underestimate how much carers need some support.

If you're going out for a meal with friends, and they say they can't afford to go to such and such a place, you can't force them to afford it.

If you find yourself caring for a relative with dementia, the chances are you'll need help.

When somebody's calling you 'Mommy,' it's a wonderful thing. But also to have that responsibility and to know that you and your partner have this little thing that's totally relying on you - and it made me, I suppose, less selfish. Not that I was mega-selfish to start with, but it's lovely having that responsibility. It's scary.

I think it's healthy to say, 'I'm 58 and, do you know what, this is what a 58-year-old woman looks like.'

It's great playing a mature character. It adds something.

When I go out, I love to put on mascara and lipstick, but I simply don't have time for leisurely facials and treatments. Going to the beauticians is not a priority for me, as when I'm off work, there is always so much catching up in the house to do.

Why do people want to kill and maim and pillage? We're all in it together.

It's true as a woman, particularly: the older you get, the parts get thinner on the ground and not quite as interesting, that's for sure.

'Downton Abbey' about upper-class posh people: of course it is.

There is nothing quite like a freshly brewed pot of tea to get you going in the morning.

I think everyone knows someone who's battling with dementia or caring for a relative affected by it. I've been staggered by how commonplace it is.

Because I came from a small town outside Glasgow, nobody from my school had ever gone into the acting profession. It was just something you didn't do. You joined the bank or became a teacher or whatever you did.