I think one probably absorbs things like a sponge and things emerge without your always being aware of it.

He has such a patronizing tone and manner, and such a sarcastic sense of humor. I found him rather brutal, a kind of elegant brutality which appealed. No, I think he came pretty much off the page.

The space and light up there in Norfolk is wonderfully peaceful. I find myself doing funny things like gardening, and cooking, which I rarely do in London.

All the great novels, all the great films, all the great dramas are fictions that actually tell us the truth about us or about human nature or about human situations without being tied into the minutia of documentary events. Otherwise we might as well just make documentaries.

I think it's possible to be multi-rooted, rather like a banyan tree, without being deracinated.

I think it's always important to be vigilant of what you're doing and aware of your surroundings.