When you come to actually act, it's a game. It may be a very serious game, but it's still a game. If you lose that sense of play, the work suffers.

Getting older is a struggle. I always feel that just under the surface of acceptance and enjoyment of the ageing process is a terrible hysteria just waiting to burst out.

I don't do the whole L.A. nightlife thing.

When you look at all the miracles attributed to Jesus, they're all about change.

Acting itself is quite scary. Some people say that actors are show-offs, very egotistical and all that kind of stuff, but it is quite scary.

I suppose I'm something of an eccentric dresser.

I'm not a Tony Blair impersonator.

No matter how difficult things are, and no matter how much grief and loss there is, you can turn it into something positive.

I love being able to play as many different characters, in as many different worlds as I possibly can. That's what I really enjoy.

I'm a huge fan of science fiction and fantasy - not so much horror because I get a bit scared.

I am prone to get carried away thinking about creative projects.

He awoke at six, as usual. He needed no alarm clock. He was already comprehensively alarmed.

...as long as she was worrying about it, it probably wasn't going to happen. Like some sort of anxiety vaccine. Like watching a pot to make sure it never boiled.

P.S. Please don't call me Isabella. That name belongs to a really pretty girl who never wrecks her clothes and who never gets dirt under her fingernails. That's definitely not me. My name is Izzy.

Learning operatic roles is ongoing, and I find that I can learn on the train or subway, during a manicure, getting my hair done, and even while driving if I only look at the score at red lights.

You can't divorce yourself from your own life experiences.

I often speak to returning service people about their experiences while serving. Whether in 1915 or 2005, the core issue of facing death on a daily basis remains.

I love the idea of species fluidity, I guess, the sense of the maiden inherent in the swan or seal, the youth inherent in the bear or deer. After all, human beings are animals.

Quips and Cranks and wanton Wiles, Nods and Becks and wreathèd Smiles.

She knew she shouldn't want him with every fiber of her being, but she couldn't help herself. Gazing at him feeling his touch - the rest of the world faded into the background

[Political movements] both favor alcohol and are against pot.