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When I first went to L.A., I really hated it. I had this preconceived idea of what it would be like. You think of Hollywood as this beautiful place, but everything looks rundown and old.

Hollywood wouldn't suit me. In L.A. it's all about work - studio people have their five minutes with you and they go, 'Oh mah Gahd, I love your movie.' You just feel very self-conscious there.

I do still sit back and wonder when I'm in LA if this is all really true or is it all kid-on. But it's great. I always bear in mind that the right place and time have a huge deal to do with it, and there are hugely talented actors who haven't had that break.

I've never been to Hollywood. I can count the number of times I've been to Los Angeles on my hands. I've never made a movie there and I've never been there for working reasons. The only reason to go there is for silly awards shows.

Hollywood is an extraordinary kind of temporary place.

My grandmother worked at one of those Bel-Air mansions, and we would go - not too often, but every now and then - to pick her up. Hollywood was probably 12 miles from my house, but it might as well have been a million miles away. The only time I saw that world was on TV. Until I started making records.

Three and a half years in L.A. was enough for me. I would love to go back for short bursts if a film opportunity came up, but it's a unique place, and you can reach saturation point. For me it was a place where creative desire and ambition meets desperation. It's in the air; it's palpable - I just didn't want to be around that.

Everybody in Hollywood was in Around the World in 80 Days. If you weren't, you left town and made up an excuse.

Times change; Hollywood is not the same as it was when I first entered the business. It felt to me like it was starting to narrow down and centralize itself around what would... make money.