I've seen and swam and climbed and lived and driven and filmed. Should it all end tomorrow, I can definitely say there would be no regrets. I am very lucky, and I know it. I really have lived 5,000 times over.
~ Benedict Cumberbatch
I drive a motorbike, so there is the whiff of the grim reaper round every corner, especially in London.
My mum and dad had worked incredibly hard to afford me an education.
I'm a Prince of Wales Trust ambassador, so I'm all about giving youth an education, a voice and a chance to not take the wrong road.
Pull the hair on my head the wrong way, and I would be on my knees begging for mercy. I have very sensitive follicles.
One of the fears of having too much work is not having time to observe. And once you get recognised, there is nowhere for you to look any more. You can't sit on a night bus and watch it all happen.
I've realised now that the reality of children is you have to be in the right place with the right person.
I had the privilege of being able to choose, or at least have the opportunity to work at, being anything but an actor.
I've been quite a late developer on the clothes front, but I've suddenly realised it is one of life's joys.
Lines are very difficult to learn.
Looking for happiness is a sure way to sadness, I think. You have to take each moment as it comes.
I am very flattered. I have also become a verb as in I have cumberbatched the UK audience apparently. Who knows, by the end of the year I might become a swear word too! It's crazy and fun and very flattering.
We all want to escape our circumstances, don't we? Especially if you are an actor.
I've been very lucky at what's happened in my career to date, but playing something as far from me as possible is an ambition of mine - anything from a mutated baddy in a comic book action thriller, to a detective. If anything, I'd like Gary Oldman's career: he's the perfect example of it. I've love to have a really broad sweep of characters - to be able to do something edgy, surprising and unfashionable.
The further you get away from yourself, the more challenging it is. Not to be in your comfort zone is great fun.
Maybe it's because I was an only child, but I've always wanted kids.
[on Martin Freeman playing Bilbo Baggins] It was great. I got to hang out with him, and I kept a straight face for a bit and then I started giggling because I know Martin, I don't know Bilbo. For Martin to be sitting there playing Bilbo is amazing. He's going to be amazing, he's going to be fantastic in this film.
The first time we did cavalry charge I was so breathless with excitement I nearly fell off the horse. I actually saw stars in front of my eyes and thought I was going to faint. The second time I had a bit more control but was still giddy with excitement. And the third time I was an emotional wreck. I had to really try hard not to cry.
A woman who knows that she doesn't have to get all decked out to look good is sexy. A woman who can make you feel smart with her conversation skills is also sexy. I believe the sense of humor is important.
The number of people my age, younger now, a whole generation younger, who are fiercely bright, over-educated, under-employed and who are politicised and purposeless really upsets me. It's soul-destroying.
To get a horse to hit a mark without a rider, to get it to stand up, to get it to rear, to get it to pick up a bucket and bring it over is amazing. It's hard work and very rewarding but can be dangerous.
Do I like being thought of as attractive? I don't know anyone on Earth who doesn't, but I do find it funny.
People's hands fascinate me. It's tempting to look at a businessman's left hand and see if there's an indentation from a missing wedding ring. Or maybe there's a tan line and the skin is pressed down where's he's worked a ring off his finger.
