I had dance training from a very young age, 3 or 4... It taught me how to present myself, about preparation and working in an ensemble, and it's something that carries with me to this day.
I think so often you can come out of drama school and get thrown in the deep end.
I wasn't an academic. I hated maths and science at school. I couldn't concentrate.
I'm quite surprised at how out of control I can be on stage because, actually, I find I like to be in control in life. It's quite freeing, really.
I just want a really varied career, and just to keep going, really.
The whole acting game can sometimes be a bit false, and you meet a lot of people in it for the fame - so there's nothing I love more than going back to Essex.
The way I see it, the third series of 'Downton Abbey' is all about change and how each character adapts to those changes.
I'm taller than most actresses, so most corsets tend to be too short in the body.
I'm the youngest of three sisters, and my parents have always encouraged all of us to do whatever made us happy.
People will consider me a part of their lives for however long 'Downton Abbey' lasts. It's a lovely thing to feel as an actor.
Until I was 27, I'd maybe been to America once and, like, Ibiza when I was 18. That was it.
You learn an incredible amount doing theatre, not just about to behave.
I don't have to walk around in hats or find remote places to go for lunch! I don't get recognised that often.
I'd like to do something that involves music.
We take so many of our freedoms for granted nowadays - I can travel where I like, I can do any job I want - but I think chivalry has been lost a little bit.
Being in the same scenes as Maggie Smith and Shirley MacLaine is something I will never forget.
I just enjoy acting, whatever area - theatre, film, television.
It's old news, me and my accent, but it always seems to make headlines.
I think my parents knew before I did that I was going to be an actress, because I was doing impressions of Margaret Thatcher at the age of four.
It's always fun to play dress up.
