Stardom is a magical yet freakish situation at times. It's a cliche but very true that at times, you feel so alone, even when you're surrounded by so many people.

I'm not one of those people that goes into details of my personal life on national TV to get attention. Some things are better left unsaid.

I don't mind being compared to Whitney, there are people miles worse to be compared to.

A lot of people are singing about how screwed up the world is, and I don't think that everybody wants to hear about that all the time.

The dreadful truth is that when people come to see their MP they have run out of better ideas.

I suppose with houses and assets, then I guess I would be a millionaire. But so are a lot of people.

The truth is that the history of the last couple of thousand years has been broadly repeated attempts by various people or institutions - in a Freudian way - to rediscover the lost childhood of Europe, this golden age of peace and prosperity under the Romans, by trying to unify it.

If we get outside the EU, if we leave the EU system, we will be relieved of a huge amount of unnecessary regulation that is holding this country back. We will be able to set our own priorities, make our own laws and set our own tax policies to suit the needs of this country. We have a huge opportunity also to make people's votes count for more.

Some people play the piano, some do Sudoku, some watch television, some people go out to dinner parties. I write books.

When I finished my degree at Oxford, I went and acted for a bit. And I was appalling. And with each part, I thought, 'Well, that's embarrassing. I'd better do one more to show people I'm not that bad.' And, in fact, instead of a taking a year, that's gone on for 35 years.

I've driven people mad on films that I've made - I want more takes; I want to try new lines. Then I want to interfere in the editing process, and I want to interfere in the advertising process - everything, everything. Pretty much Barbra Streisand in trousers, I am!

I think the part of my acting career where I've been more successful, I've been incredibly cushioned. People are much too nice to you. You go into politics, and people are absolutely brutal. You've got proper enemies, and they're vicious. It's very invigorating.

A lot of actors look at scripts and think, 'How will this stretch me as an actor?' But I always thought, 'Do I want to turn the page? Is this going to make people laugh?'

I don't hate L.A., but I'm nervous about becoming one of those people who has a ferocious interest in how films did at the box office that weekend and, you know, would want to meet for egg-white omelets in the morning.

I get very annoyed when people think I'm nice or diffident or a polite English gentleman. I'm a nasty piece of work, and people should know that.

Courage is soldiers fighting on the front line, or people living on the bread line.

I don't think there's much point in putting me a deep, dark, heavy, emotional film because there are people who do it so much better than I do.

Strangely enough I'm better on a stage. I love that I feel like I blossom in front of a whole bunch of people.

I like people to match my energy.

I know so many people who have battled breast cancer and they didn't all make it.

It's very hard to get the dynamics where two people can stimulate each other and be happy.

You know, you want to be a success. You want people to know who you are.

What I am doing is kind by telling people who are useless, Do something that you’re good at.

15 Thousand people auditioned in Cleveland and yet the odds of you getting in are a million to one.