-
I was always pretty ambitious, although it probably helps that I can't do anything else - apart from cleaning lavatories. But I remember my mum once said, 'I suppose you'll give it a year and see if you can make it as an actress?' And I said, 'No Mum, I think I'll give it 10.'
Olivia Colman
-
There was nothing about 'The Killing' that patronized its audience, and it was quite slow and detailed, all of the things which, for a long time, people had been nervous of making.
Olivia Colman
-
For some reason, people imagine that dramatic things happen to people who don't look beautiful.
Olivia Colman
-
I did a forward roll for the kids the other day, thinking it'd be a breeze like it was when I was six, and I had to lie flat for about 20 minutes afterwards - 'Leave mummy alone; she's feeling a bit dizzy.'
Olivia Colman
-
I had a lovely, feral, free childhood - out and then come back when you're hungry or it gets too dark. I feel slightly cruel that I'm not offering my children the same.
Olivia Colman
-
I spent years commuting into London when I was working as a temp, and I hated the monotony of it.
Olivia Colman
-
You see thousands of films you forget the minute you come out of the cinema, don't you? Because they don't mean anything. It's the tough ones like 'Breaking the Waves' and 'Nil By Mouth' that stay with you, that you never forget. I'd like to leave a few of those behind if possible.
Olivia Colman
-
I was rubbish at school.
Olivia Colman
-
I was never one of those surly teenagers who doesn't smile. My lovely godfather said it was always lovely to see me because I was the only teenager who smiled. And I was so in awe of him, I thought it was one of the best things anyone had ever said to me. So it made me want to live up to what he said.
Olivia Colman
-
In fact I was slightly badly behaved at school and got in trouble. I would get a bee in my bonnet about something I thought wasn't right, and I would ape about too, to make everybody laugh. That was my way through my girls' school, because I wasn't very academic.
Olivia Colman
-
I think I remember being held by my mum as a baby.
Olivia Colman
-
Actually, lots of women, when they're pregnant, feel like steel. They feel incredible.
Olivia Colman
-
I've always wanted to play a Marvel baddie. I'm not sure I fit the mold, though. Like a powerful, extraordinary woman. Somebody with superpowers would be really fun, but I'm not sure how many middle-aged women they have in Marvel.
Olivia Colman
-
I eat a bit too much; my teeth aren't perfect; I've got eye bags. I look like a normal 39-year-old woman - but in England, no one minds that.
Olivia Colman
-
I want everyone to know what they deserve in relationships: that they can demand equality and kindness. Because everyone will have a relationship at some point in their life. It's what we all do, every day, and we need to know how to do it.
Olivia Colman
-
I do sometimes wonder if people think, 'Oh we'll have her because she cries well.' The odd thing is I don't really know where it comes from. If the script is good, I find I can usually cry without too much trouble - in fact, the hard thing is trying to get me to stop. But I'm not really a crier in real life. I'm not a dramatic person, you see.
Olivia Colman
-
I am a perfectly normal woman. If what we do is storytelling and represent people that we see all day and every day, well, we do not see supermodels all day and every day.
Olivia Colman
-
I don't have a process; I just feel it. My book on acting would be very short.
Olivia Colman
-
I don't think you can cry if the script is rubbish. I have to feel it; it's as simple as that. It's just like if you're watching something moving, and you feel yourself welling up. It's the same thing. You're just being carried along with the story. There's nothing magical about it. I think I'm in touch with my emotions, and I can't help it.
Olivia Colman
-
I used to want to be in 'Downton' because I had never been in a period drama, but then I did 'The Suspicions of Mr Whicher' and had to wear one of those frocks and... I didn't feel very comfortable.
Olivia Colman
-
I don't like the bullying, do-one-over style of comedy. It's so cheap.
Olivia Colman
-
If something touches me, I cry. That's it. I'm a bit raw, a bit rubbish, really. Often, a director will say to me, 'I don't think this is a scene where your character cries.' And all I can say is, good luck with that!
Olivia Colman
-
Everybody laughs all the time, and some of the worst things that happen make you laugh 'cause it's a defense isn't it, I suppose.
Olivia Colman
-
If I didn't have children I might be more of a lush than I am. I like booze. I struggle with smoking. And I'm a big swearer. I'm trying to rein it in but I do think it's a nice seasoning of language.
Olivia Colman
