Quote

Now Jack Charlton wasn't wrong, I was a bad footballer.

So I did in fact spend two and a half years in the Middlesbrough car park practising skills. But if you spend four or five or six hours a day practising, you get better.

What once was an expression of who I was - acting - also became my hiding place.

I spent much of my life hiding.

I remember how inspiring it was to meet players like Bobby Charlton or Bryan Robson when I was a kid. I still remember Clive Allen showing up when I received a trophy for my Sunday league team.

He's a legend and I respect his work, so I went down and paid my respects when Charlton was on the set. He was nice but I think he lied a little. He said it was an honour to be in a movie with me, but I don't believe it.

Richard Burton is one of my heroes.

I was in the movies. I danced, I sang, I learned to work in front of a camera. It was like being in a repertory company.

Earlier on in my career I felt that I had to hide behind a lot of different masks, and showboat ways of performing. Now, that's a lie. The less I have to hide, the less I have to act.