Quotes from Sarah Lancashire

I'm not terribly good at being around work I don't care about!

In my early days depression did inhibit me because I was too debilitated and terrified to tell anyone why I couldn't get on a train from Manchester for auditions in London.

You don't always realize the impact you have on people's lives. You just think 'I'm an actor, I don't think I'm doing anything particularly important in life' and then you suddenly realize that actually for a fleeting moment you do make a difference to somebody's life - it has an impact.

For me, it was much more important to continue to learn my craft as an actor and get a bit of flesh on the bones.

When I'm working in theatre I never go to the bar with the other actors; I go home and think about what I did wrong.

I can tell very early on, reading a script, within six or seven pages, whether I'm looking at real people, and whether I can see and hear real people.

I am a stickler for damn good writing.

I would never condone anything which I thought was salacious, titillating, or gratuitous.

I need to grow as an actor. The wonderful thing is you never stop learning, and as my only interest is trying to perfect what I do, it's wonderful because I'll never succeed, so I'll have to keep working.

Actors are bloody marvelous at hiding.

Working on 'The Paradise' is like putting on a comfy overcoat.

I took 18 months away to have my son, Joseph, and it was the biggest break I'd ever had in my working life of nearly 20 years.

Age affects us all in the workplace. We all get a little less appealing as we get older, unfortunately.

It's a joy doing 'Tango.' I'd do it till the day I die, frankly.

My father's family, I think, were mostly from Lancashire, but I don't know how far back we go. I think it's quite a few generations.

Love is love. It doesn't matter about sexuality, it's just about how you feel towards somebody else and being good and honest with them.

I'm straight, but it's immaterial what your sexuality is. Isn't it really just about being a fulfilled human being?

I truly believe that love is love and gender is immaterial.

Being an actor can be a cruel experience because there is no cooling-down period. You can be involved in something that's incredibly intense, but then it's a wrap and you've finished and you go home. I find it difficult to complete a job and then return to reality and find my healthy place.

Soaps are a double-edged sword. There can be prejudice from some writers and producers who feel you will lower the currency of their work if you've been in one. You have to rise above such ludicrous prejudice.

My family on my mother's side is Irish.

I come from a line of women who can bake, so I think I've inherited a bit of family knowledge.

Anyone who has to be accountable in a time when resources are shrinking, where transparency is necessary, where the pressures are greater, is going to find that it takes a toll.

'Kiri' reflects the society we're living in now, where everything has to be transparent and people are under so much pressure. The scrutiny is extraordinary and you really get a sense of panic emerging.