Quotes from Ncuti Gatwa

I am from Scotland and moved down to London when I was 21.

There's not many people that look like me in Scotland.

People really cannot understand the concept of a black boy in a tracksuit in London being from Scotland.

I've always been a bit scared to say that I'm Scottish because it's almost as if people wouldn't believe me or people wouldn't buy that from me, or people wouldn't accept it. And so now I think nobody has got the right to tell you what you are. You just are who you are.

I thought I was the only black Scottish person in the world.

I definitely felt growing up that I wasn't seen as the same as anyone around me because no one around me looked like me. There were no black Scottish role models.

I'm liking coming to nice hotels, getting nice clothes sent to me - I got a pair of free boots the other day! It definitely makes a change from getting the 243 bus from Tottenham.

I'm most proud of my heritage; being able to shape people's perception of Rwanda or Rwandans.

I love that I get to play a black character who's not a stereotype, who is not afraid to be vulnerable, who comes from a loving home situation. I know it sounds stupid, but for me, these tiny, little glimpses into people's lives matter.

Make-up are the first people the actors go to on set every day - they see you at your most vulnerable. Then they paint the character on you, they're integral to that transformation. It's such an intimate art form that you develop a really close relationship with your make-up artist.

A lot of our sex education at school is so biological.

Hair in the black community is such a big thing culturally. The barbershop is a place for black men to socialise, catch up and bond. It's the same for black women in the salon. Going there is my favourite thing to do in the week. You catch up with people, someone comes around with food, someone else is selling something.

The world has been set up in such a way that we don't even realise how ingrained certain things are, like how much we live in a patriarchal society or how institutional racism is ingrained in how we see the world. We don't realise how many things are being set in stone, in our heads.

My mum is a fashion inspiration to me. She always goes to great lengths to get ready in the morning, from her hair to her makeup to her nails, and matching her suit with her shoes.

Adebayo Oke-Lawal is so talented. He takes risks to make his suits different.

I'd been warned that acting was an unstable profession and knew my parents couldn't support me financially. I had assured them I was going to work as hard as possible to make this career happen so their hard work, as immigrants who fled Rwanda and sacrificed everything for me, wouldn't be in vain. But I was falling short on my promise.

For any parent, all they want is for their child to be safe and cared for.

I always had faith in my charisma.

My mum and dad were born into nothing and came to this country with nothing. They've had to make so many sacrifices so I wouldn't have to make any, and always supported me.

That's the thing about 'Sex Education,' the shooting situations are so bizarre that nothing is a surprise any more. It's just another day at the office.

Face your front' is a saying in my parents' culture. 'Face your front, don't look left and don't look right.' Don't be comparing yourself to everybody else, yeah? Follow your own journey.

I think it's quite natural as an actor to compare yourself to how well other people are doing and how other people might've played that role you auditioned for. There's a lot of comparison you can do as an actor, which is natural, because it's a competitive industry. However, we're all individuals, so you can only ever be yourself.

Buying my pain aux raisins and someone wanting a selfie was so confusing.

I think I have got quite a posh Scottish accent. It's funny because I grew up in Oxgangs and Fife.