The backdrop of my childhood seemed to be the back streets, the dark alleys and the rainy streets of...
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The backdrop of my childhood seemed to be the back streets, the dark alleys and the rainy streets of those cities. I know every beat and rhythm of that life, which could be another reason for why I'm drawn often to dark gritty roles and why I wanted to show the gritty side of Glasgow in my movie. It's a landscape I know.
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The quality of TV drama nowadays is getting better and better. They've had to invent a new term for ...
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The quality of TV drama nowadays is getting better and better. They've had to invent a new term for it: 'high-end television.'
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I was 16 when I was in a band, for about 10 minutes. I went off and did acting after that. So it was...
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I was 16 when I was in a band, for about 10 minutes. I went off and did acting after that. So it was a wee moment for me when I sang.
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I just don't like the whole Hollywood thing.
I just don't like the whole Hollywood thing.
On his wife: We met in Cracker. I played a maniac fan who murders a policeman and she did my makeup....
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On his wife: We met in Cracker. I played a maniac fan who murders a policeman and she did my makeup. I thought anyone interested in me looking like that must have genuinely liked me.
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I never rehearse. Never! I think it's a waste of time.
I never rehearse. Never! I think it's a waste of time.
The more people know about an actor the less convincing they become. A bit of mystery's a good thing...
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The more people know about an actor the less convincing they become. A bit of mystery's a good thing.
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Acting is a really insular thing.
Acting is a really insular thing.
I owe my father everything.
I owe my father everything.
I've always taken my love of children from my father. He was a children magnet. Suddenly, having my ...
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I've always taken my love of children from my father. He was a children magnet. Suddenly, having my first child hit home what my dad went through.
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On filming in his native Glasgow: At times it was incredibly emotional. Very close to the bone. It a...
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On filming in his native Glasgow: At times it was incredibly emotional. Very close to the bone. It affected me in ways that I hadn't bargained for when I agreed to do it.
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The darker the character, the more interesting.
The darker the character, the more interesting.
I'd love to do a Columbo-type detective character in a series.
I'd love to do a Columbo-type detective character in a series.
On making The Full Monty: I thought it was a load of fucking pish, to be honest.
On making The Full Monty: I thought it was a load of fucking pish, to be honest.
I love sci-fi because it leads in the imagination, and I always say it has the most intelligent fans...
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I love sci-fi because it leads in the imagination, and I always say it has the most intelligent fans in the world.
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I like to be working and moving - the worst thing you can do to me is stick me in a room all day whi...
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I like to be working and moving - the worst thing you can do to me is stick me in a room all day while you're lighting a shot. That just kills me.
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I hate the word 'hippy.'
I hate the word 'hippy.'
Most of the time, you find that the smaller the budget, the more the project is about something subs...
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Most of the time, you find that the smaller the budget, the more the project is about something substantive.
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My dad was rubbish at all other aspects of his financial life, but he's pretty good at paying the re...
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My dad was rubbish at all other aspects of his financial life, but he's pretty good at paying the rent.
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A lot of Scots have settled in Canada over the years and it's a very easy place for Scots - they und...
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A lot of Scots have settled in Canada over the years and it's a very easy place for Scots - they understand us, we understand them.
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My wife was a make-up artist, and she's a total product junkie. Our bathroom is packed full of lotio...
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My wife was a make-up artist, and she's a total product junkie. Our bathroom is packed full of lotions and potions so I end up trying them out.
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People like Jim Jarmusch or Spike Jonze make the kind of American cinema that really interests me. A...
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People like Jim Jarmusch or Spike Jonze make the kind of American cinema that really interests me. And working with them has, so far, been the only thing I haven't been able to do. But other than that I'm perfectly happy with where I am.
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Acting, the arts in general, is a magnet for the wounded of society.
Acting, the arts in general, is a magnet for the wounded of society.
I've really enjoyed my work in television, but the problem for me is the turnover of directors every...
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I've really enjoyed my work in television, but the problem for me is the turnover of directors every week.
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People go to the movies to watch a film and all they're thinking about is the actress's cellulite th...
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People go to the movies to watch a film and all they're thinking about is the actress's cellulite they saw in a magazine.
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I feel like I'm the luckiest man on the planet.
I feel like I'm the luckiest man on the planet.
I loved cinema while growing up and, for the longest time, wanted to be a director.
I loved cinema while growing up and, for the longest time, wanted to be a director.
Biologically, I'm lucky - an angular face and dark coloring which shows up well on camera.
Biologically, I'm lucky - an angular face and dark coloring which shows up well on camera.
I'd love to play some kind of fop.
I'd love to play some kind of fop.
It took a long time for me to accept I was an actor, a professional actor, and that, actually, I mak...
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It took a long time for me to accept I was an actor, a professional actor, and that, actually, I make a living out of this.
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I think I have a natural, if I can say that, got a kind of natural ability in comedy.
I think I have a natural, if I can say that, got a kind of natural ability in comedy.
It depends who the director is you know, I mean Ken Loach for instance. I've done up to 32 takes wit...
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It depends who the director is you know, I mean Ken Loach for instance. I've done up to 32 takes with him.
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There are a lot of things that make up a performance, a lot of technical things. It isn't always jus...
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There are a lot of things that make up a performance, a lot of technical things. It isn't always just about pulling it up from the darkest recesses of your mind or your heart. It's your experience and your observation.
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Hunger's a great spur.
Hunger's a great spur.
If there's anything you want to ask your parents, ask them before they go, because once they go, the...
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If there's anything you want to ask your parents, ask them before they go, because once they go, they're gone.
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Acting is probably the greatest therapy in the world. You can get a lot stuff out of you on the set ...
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Acting is probably the greatest therapy in the world. You can get a lot stuff out of you on the set so you don't have to take it home with you at night. It's the stuff between the lines, the empty space between those lines which is interesting.
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I do tend to divide my childhood into darkness and light, and the first seven years were certainly t...
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I do tend to divide my childhood into darkness and light, and the first seven years were certainly the darkness.
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I often have scripts sent to me with allegedly Scottish characters where I end up telling them, 'You...
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I often have scripts sent to me with allegedly Scottish characters where I end up telling them, 'You're going to have to rethink this whole thing!'
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I have a reputation for being an improvisational actor, which is true, but I also know what I'm doin...
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I have a reputation for being an improvisational actor, which is true, but I also know what I'm doing so that if the improvisational strand doesn't work I can go back to what I know is already there.
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My first love is art, and I see a lot of things in an artistic way.
My first love is art, and I see a lot of things in an artistic way.
To be honest I don't think I was any great shakes as a theatre actor because everything I was doing ...
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To be honest I don't think I was any great shakes as a theatre actor because everything I was doing was really small in size - intimate.
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Anyone who knows anything about me knows that I am a very patriotic guy, in terms of my Scottishness...
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Anyone who knows anything about me knows that I am a very patriotic guy, in terms of my Scottishness and my roots.
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I'm not someone who believes in wasting my vote.
I'm not someone who believes in wasting my vote.
The script will point you in certain directions and I go the opposite if I can. I try to do one thin...
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The script will point you in certain directions and I go the opposite if I can. I try to do one thing and tell a different story with my eyes. I believe what's more interesting is always what's not being said.
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A lot of my work is with children and there's a reason for that, because they really level you.
A lot of my work is with children and there's a reason for that, because they really level you.
One of the odd and the weird things about filming was the number of people who came up and said, 'I ...
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One of the odd and the weird things about filming was the number of people who came up and said, 'I knew your auntie', or 'I'm your cousin on your mother's side'. And I didn't know these people existed, because I only ever knew my father's side of the family.
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A lot of the characters I play have problems, they are marginalized, they have serious psychological...
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A lot of the characters I play have problems, they are marginalized, they have serious psychological problems, problems with relationships, with childhood. These are big subjects, big subjects. You can't balk at work like that. As an actor, that's as good as it gets.
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I'd totally be attracted to a geek girl!
I'd totally be attracted to a geek girl!
I'd work with Danny Boyle every day of the week. No matter what he was doing I would do that.
I'd work with Danny Boyle every day of the week. No matter what he was doing I would do that.
The thing I miss the most about Scotland is the football.
The thing I miss the most about Scotland is the football.
I never go anywhere without my iPod.
I never go anywhere without my iPod.
Every actor I think has got their own number of takes that they like, you know. Some actors like to ...
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Every actor I think has got their own number of takes that they like, you know. Some actors like to go all day, you know on the one scene and some actors want to take two takes. I personally like four.
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I want to keep audiences off balance, so they don't know who I am or how to take me. If I duck and w...
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I want to keep audiences off balance, so they don't know who I am or how to take me. If I duck and weave, as Frank Bruno might say, I'll have a longer shelf life.
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Each performance and each film is what it is. It's right and belongs within that moment. You look at...
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Each performance and each film is what it is. It's right and belongs within that moment. You look at it and try to make it fit your particular part of your character and your particular film.
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I used to be a rabid reader, but now it's scripts or nothing - network television is quite relentles...
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I used to be a rabid reader, but now it's scripts or nothing - network television is quite relentless, and you can't drop the ball.
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Although people always cite that role as an example of my dark side, I'm not so sure. Really, Trains...
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Although people always cite that role as an example of my dark side, I'm not so sure. Really, Trainspotting is a black comedy and in many ways Begbie's the funniest one in it.
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Vancouver's a very child friendly city, there's... no doubt about that.
Vancouver's a very child friendly city, there's... no doubt about that.
Of course, I love chats with various actors about the process and how they do it. To me, if it's not...
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Of course, I love chats with various actors about the process and how they do it. To me, if it's not on the camera, if it's not there, it's not worth it. It really just isn't worth it.
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Anyone that knows me knows what I'm about, and I'm very much a British actor, a European actor.
Anyone that knows me knows what I'm about, and I'm very much a British actor, a European actor.
When I look back at it now, my past and the way I grew up, I grew up on communes.
When I look back at it now, my past and the way I grew up, I grew up on communes.
To pursue a career in Hollywood you have to have a personality bypass. Look at the top 20 stars in t...
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To pursue a career in Hollywood you have to have a personality bypass. Look at the top 20 stars in the world - there's probably only two actors among them. Hollywood's not about you as an actor. It's about your currency, what you 'bring to the table'. And I've never been one to jump through hoops for anyone.
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Bullying is a terrible, terrible thing.
Bullying is a terrible, terrible thing.
Guys, particularly in the West, go to the gym and train for hours and hours to pick up something tha...
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Guys, particularly in the West, go to the gym and train for hours and hours to pick up something that is heavier than them. Why would you want to do that?
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I rant and rave about noise pollution.
I rant and rave about noise pollution.
The U.K. and the U.S. are very different countries, and it really shows in the television.
The U.K. and the U.S. are very different countries, and it really shows in the television.
In the late '70s, maybe just before I started, there was still an attitude that if you did film you ...
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In the late '70s, maybe just before I started, there was still an attitude that if you did film you didn't do TV and vice versa, but that's gone now.
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I hate that term, "Method". It's definitely been given to me over the years, but I don't know if it'...
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I hate that term, "Method". It's definitely been given to me over the years, but I don't know if it's true. My belief is that every actor's got their own "method", and as long as it works, that's OK.
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In troubled times the last thing you want to do is to stick your money into a film. It's such a gamb...
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In troubled times the last thing you want to do is to stick your money into a film. It's such a gamble.
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On his father: Back in the Sixties, when I was growing up, the notion of a one-parent family - espec...
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On his father: Back in the Sixties, when I was growing up, the notion of a one-parent family - especially of a single father - didn't really exist. And for him to have walked that road and lived that life and still managed to raise me and love me as he did, was just incredible.
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I'm in four different films this year, and I have four different accents. I sound different in every...
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I'm in four different films this year, and I have four different accents. I sound different in every film. You have to love a character to play it well, and change in my work is what I want.
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I don't take a great deal of interest in party politics. Social politics interests me a great deal m...
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I don't take a great deal of interest in party politics. Social politics interests me a great deal more.
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I think you should only wear jewellery if it has a story behind it.
I think you should only wear jewellery if it has a story behind it.
The first thing you should know about me is when I was three years old my mother left me and my fath...
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The first thing you should know about me is when I was three years old my mother left me and my father. And that was traumatic obviously for my father - he suffered a nervous breakdown at that time in his life.
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People in Scotland appreciate homegrown talent, but it's getting harder and harder to get films made...
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People in Scotland appreciate homegrown talent, but it's getting harder and harder to get films made in Britain.
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