Ruth Jones

Ruth Jones: (on being surprised by Gavin And Stacy's success): I am surprised because it gets lots of criticism levelled at it for being too sweet. But I think that's why people are so fond of it, because it's not cynical or edgy. James and I really love the characters and we're so pleased that everybody else shares that. People really think these characters actually exist and genuinely feel like they know them. I meet different people and they all love a different line or a different character. Really random things as well, which me and James often think went under the radar, people tell us that they love

Ruth Jones: I never had any moment of revelation - I know I always liked showing off.

Ruth Jones: I loved my time as a student – Warwick is a campus university and I know that's not everyone's cup of tea but I liked the fact that we all lived in our own little world. The only sad thing was that the three years were over too quickly! It's horrible when it's all over because you have to sort of grow up. Going to drama school was a bit of a shock because I realised my 15 hours of lectures at Warwick was a breeze compared to a 40-hour week of rehearsals, voice classes, dance and stage combat lessons. Incidentally, I was rubbish at stage combat. Hardly surprising.

Ruth Jones: I'd love to present Antiques Roadshow. When the expert says, "And if you took that to auction, I think you'd get £200 for that," and they go, "Really?", I'd love to then go, "No, you're not really pleased about that, are you? That's crap, you were hoping for five grand!"

Ruth Jones: (when asked what the best thing about being Welsh is) Tom Jones is a fellow countryman and we have a fantastic range of accents. I'm patriotic, not nationalistic. I'm not anti-English or any of that nonsense.

Ruth Jones: I once got a letter from a guy who was in prison when I was in Fat Friends and my character was on an exercise regime. He said he would be happy to help me with some exercise routines when he was home on leave from his open prison!

Ruth Jones: I love Cardiff - it's a great place to live. I go to London twice a week so I get the best of both worlds really.

Ruth Jones: (when asked if she was familiar with Torchwood before being cast in it) I never actually watched Torchwood when the first series was on. I'm not a fan of science fiction whatsoever, though I watched Doctor Who when I was a child, as absolutely everyone did. I can remember being terrified by those big luminous maggots and the giant spiders, and I really did think that the Daleks were going to come and get me during the night.

Ruth Jones: What I love about Gavin & Stacey, I hope, is that it has real heart to it. What I find a bit wearing is the cynicism that can be found in a lot of comedy. I think there's something nice about doing a comedy series about real people but tuning into that slight madness that's inherent in all our characters.

Ruth Jones: (when asked if she considered herself more as an actor or writer) Can I say performer? That covers a multitude of sins. I was an actor first and I suppose that's my natural leaning. The writing is something that's come about quite recently, so I haven't really got to used to that yet. I honestly didn't think I would ever write anything but it's fantastic to be able to create something you can be in. It's almost the perfect scenario in a way.