I'm very shocked when I look at television and I see such an aggressive youth and image obsession in the representation of women on our screens.

Something like 'Sex And The City' was insulting - women all clawing on to their youth when there's such ripe territory in honestly exploring women's lives as they get older.

I lost a girlfriend when I was in my 30s. She was 46. It all sounds so trite, but I put a Post-it on my dressing-room wall. It said, 'The past is history. The future is a mystery. This moment is a gift, which is why it's called the present.'

I grew up without the rose-tinted look at the profession many of my friends had, but I've been very lucky playing major roles in 'An Ideal Husband', 'Arcadia' and 'The Memory of Water'.

We have three generations at home, including my father-in-law. I keep a very low profile, and a lot of things I do are very much with the family in mind. I have actually made films with the family around me.

Family is most important to me.

If a man puts a lion's family in jeopardy, what would it do? Would it enjoy fighting? Of course it wouldn't, but it's going to fight.

Almost 24 million children - one in three - are likely growing up without their father involved in their lives.