Quotes

It was just my growth spurt. They had to alter all the costumes, especially as the beginning of the film was shot at the end.

I think I took it in my stride, you fear nothing when you're 12. It was a big learning curve, but my mother protected me from a lot of what was going on. I just turned up and did what they asked me to do. It sounds like a performing dog.

It's amazing to think that I got it from all those thousands who applied. There must have been some natural talent, I suppose, but it was mainly because of my resemblance to Alexis.

I don't think she had any thought of my becoming a star. She just wanted to do something about my Yorkshire accent.

It was Sir Laurence Olivier, my mother was shaking. I'm afraid that I hadn't heard of him. Probably some of the established people were friends with my mother because of their age group. I was just a 12 or 13-year-old boy who happened to be there. I don't think it turned my head. Certainly the money I received wasn't life changing.

Unfortunately I'm quite cynical about a lot of films. Because of what I know about making films, I just get a feeling when something isn't right.

The problem was that I was too old to be a man and too young to be a boy. I had an interview with Kirk Douglas, but I was too big and with Orson Welles, but I was too small. He was a very big man. I had some history and it opened doors for me, but there wasn't necessarily the drive to take it forward, either. If I'd been 19 instead of 13 I might have made a bit more of it, but I knew how hard it was in the acting world; it made me realise how lucky I was to get the part in the first place.

I don't recall a great deal of interest from my contemporaries, but I suppose there could have been a little bit of jealousy. Because I lived in a small village I did the same things and kept the same friends. There were a few nice stories to tell, though. Then girls started to take an interest, too. I suppose that's why I was sent to an all-boys school.