Aisling Bea

I grew up in rural Ireland; we only had a few TV channels and had never even heard of sketch shows, but it was completely natural for me to tell jokes and stories. ”

You change things by focusing your energy on doing your job well. ”

I had a bad break up at university - you know, when your heart breaks for the very first time, and you think, 'I must leave this island,' as if it had never happened to anyone before. I said 'OK, I'll go to England,' and it was the best decision I ever made. ”

An hour show panics me a lot less than five minutes at the O2. How do you put yourself across and make sure people have a good time in five minutes? ”

Repealing the Eighth Amendment is about women who don't want to be pregnant. It's not about a certain type of woman, a certain age of woman - we all known sisters and mothers who have chosen to go on with a pregnancy and those who haven't. ”

I remember, when I got my first period, I was almost afraid to tell me mother, who's quite an open, loving person. But I felt really weird; the chat just wasn't there. ”

Up to the age of five, I wanted to be a builder. My neighbour, a builder called Paddy White, would come in for a cup of tea with my mother. I'd assemble all the pillows together at interesting angles, thinking he would spot my talent at a raw young age and take me on as an apprentice. ”

Getting a laugh was what I'd been doing with my family and at school since the age of three. ”

People who succeed in my job are people who are not afraid to look silly. ”

My job is to make people laugh. ”