Quotes from Sophie Ellis Bextor

I can definitely tell when mum has got money because then she likes to go shopping to spend it, whereas dad is steadier and avoids splurges. I like to think I've inherited both sides.

The fact that my mother was on television every week while I was young was occasionally awkward, and often frustrating.

Turning the thermostat down is something that I do pretty reluctantly. I like to be able to walk around in whatever I fancy at home.

I must confess I knew very little about the trance scene, I'm more house and commercial dance but it was really interesting and different.

Getting up to dance to your own stuff looks pretty pretentious. And leaving the dancefloor when it comes on is just awkward.

A career in entertainment has a lifespan, like one in sport.

In real life, I'm not super-posh but if that's the stereotype, I really don't care. It could be worse.

You need to have a life outside your career.

Yes, being educated is definitely an advantage. But having said that, I've met so many people in life who haven't done very well at school but who are still really bright.

My little boy Sonny makes me laugh all the time. He has good comedic timing.

That's part of the reason I called the album 'Shoot From The Hip.' I did feel it was time to open up more.

I don't want to sound like an old grandmother but actually it's quite nice when you get up early and then, by the time it gets to 10am, you're quite perky and already quite switched on.

Dance music is great, but it's not a time to be reflective or particularly wistful.

I really love being in London at weekends - there's always so much to do.

I would love to record something with PJ Harvey or Alison Goldfrapp.

When I first started out, I got criticism for the way I looked. I think, now, it's a good thing because, why would you want to look like everyone else?

I'm someone who has always been quite clear about what I like. In the studio, I'm not a control freak but I know what I want.

My parents separated when I was four. It wasn't the smoothest of divorces, but then as my mother always says, you can't have a passionate marriage without a passionate divorce.

Some people can get away with being very sexy to men and not looking like a complete cow, but I didn't think I was in a position where people knew me well enough

Also, I think women really come into their own in their 30s.

There are a lot of people out there who lie about their age and I think it does us all a disservice. It can't all be over when you hit 30. That would be rubbish.

But I don't like working on lyrics publicly in the studio - I prefer to take them away and work on them in my bedroom.

When it comes to my family I never quite know how protective I have to be, or what I should or shouldn't say.

It's funny how intimate it feels to get a text.