Marc Warren

(on the private vs the public) Marc: I do my job the best I can, but the other side of this business is celebrity and I've never understood that curiosity. I used to create a persona of being incredibly together, but now I'm a lot more accepting of my flaws. People say, 'Be yourself'. There's many ways of interpreting that.

(on his magical talents) Marc: I've done some sleight of hand stuff. I learned it from Ali Bongo when I was doing Oliver Twist, because he was teaching Robert Lindsay. I learnt about mentalism too, which is what Derren Brown does. I don't have mates around for magic evenings, though. I stopped it. I realised I was using magic as a way to avoid communication with people.

Marc: (on what superpowers he'd like to have) I'd have to choose two superpowers. I'd be able to live forever; I would be able to indulge in all the vices I wanted to without feeling bad or worrying about doing myself any harm.

Marc: I once got some good advice from Michael Caine. He said: 'Don't blink and your performance will be more powerful and intriguing.' I have done that a lot - the drawback is you get very watery eyes.

(on moving from "Hustle" to "Messiah") Marc: It remains to be seen if it works. I'm more anxious about it than anything else I have done. Hustle was a rich vein of creativity but I never felt any creative process with "Messiah.

(on why he went for The Hustle) Marc: I wanted to get away from (playing dark characters) because I'm sick of playing nutters. I think it's because of my eyes you know, I look a bit spooky!

(on what makes him squeamish) Marc: I don't like any wood in my mouth. Oh Christ. Even saying 'lolly sticks' makes me wince. You know when you go to the doctors and they use that flat bit of wood to hold your tongue down and look at your tonsils or whatever? That's a killer for me. I won't let them do it.

(with a reputation for playing 'nutters', Marc was asked what he would do if faced with a fight) Marc: I'd run; I'd definitely run. Fighting scares me to death. But I remember somebody telling me it's not the big guys you worry about, it's the little ones. There's this saying - it's not the dog in the fight, it's the fight in the dog. It's the little ones that are the nutters because they've got more to prove. But I've never been in a fight and it scares me to death. Don't touch the face!

Marc: It's a long struggle being an actor, I don't know if I'd ever recommend it to anybody!