The first episodes I actually read for 'Downton,' Sybil was really intimidated and hadn't come into her own. So it's only in Series Two that she's become so headstrong. In general, I find it exciting to play strong, female roles because they're shocking.

I'm really into strong, female roles - but they don't have to necessarily be loud - I'm just as interested in introverts too.

I do so many things. Like when I was younger, if I drove past a house that I didn't want to live in, I'd hold my breath. Driving around somewhere like Slough I'd go blue in the face.

I just really think every job I do, I get this gypsy attitude to money.

I wish I could tell you me and my rock band were traveling around, strung out. No, we were a family band. Straight Partridge Family.

Let's just say my phone blew up when I came out on global television. The only people that knew were my immediate family members and my closest friends, maybe like three of them. So you can imagine how many texts and emails and Facebook messages that I got after coming out, most of which were very supportive from the LGBT community.

As a child, my mother had instilled in me a feeling of being born for a purpose.

I felt a responsibility to Simon and to our kids to be able to live with integrity and not have some strange split psychology of 'This is who my dad is at home, and this is who he is to the public.'