Antony Sher

If I could write a letter to my teenage self, I'd probably say something like: 'You ain't gonna believe what will become of you.'

The whole of my acting career is a bit of a mystery to me.

Most of my career has been spent with the RSC doing Shakespeare, and the thing you learn from Shakespeare is that his historical plays don't bear anything other than a basic resemblance to history.

What drew me to acting in the first place was disguise.

I feel so sorry for younger actors who aren't able to have the opportunities that I had, starting out in repertory theatre. It's really tough on young actors now.

I was a weak kid, not good at what all the boys at school were good at and I found that by acting, by being other people, I could liberate myself from those inadequacies.

I'm always very proud of belonging to three minorities: gay, Jewish, white South African.

I believe deeply in therapy. There's no one in the world who wouldn't benefit from it.

I'm a huge fan of David Hockney. I love the way he keeps reinventing himself.

I love the mixture that's in me. It makes me me. And that's why it's such a shame that people waste energy in denying who they are.

I love playing outsiders, I always do.

Life is just more comfortable if you're honest and open about everything. I spent so many years being in the closet about one thing or another.