For male actors, getting older means you get more interesting parts to play.

There's a terrible pressure on you to become a celebrity these days if you want to further your career. That has never really interested me. I'm not a famous actor and that's fine by me if the work keeps coming in. I am very lucky to have had the parts I've had without being in the limelight. To be a celebrity you have to court the paps [paparazzi] and that isn't something I am interested in at all.

[on working with Trevor Nunn] He was very influential on me because he made no distinction between a musical and a play, and thrives on the notion that he can do Shakespeare one night and a big Broadway show the next with the same cast, who all approach it in the same way.

I never have any plans, I just sort of wait and see. I do worry sometimes that this could be my last job, but I think most actors feel that way one time or another.

I love writing screenplays for my own pleasure. I've adapted all sorts of plays, including Shakspeare. It is a way of relaxing to me.