Top 25 Ruth Bradley Quotes

I didn’t know my mother was an actress until I was eight and she went back to work. At an even younger age than that, I’d wanted to be an actress, so when I saw her, I clearly remember thinking, ‘This is a strange coincidence.’

I did a film a few years ago where I gained a lot of weight for it. I was happy to do that because it was called for in the script.

You just don’t know who you could fall in love with.

I saw ‘The Help’ on DVD. I was blown away by Viola Davis: she really straddled that fine line in the plot between what was tragic and what was heart-warming.

We’re all a result of our early years and our nature and nurture.

In any good piece of writing, it should be easy enough to switch genders.

I never get recognised. I must have one of those forgettable faces, ha! And that’s not a bad thing.

‘The Wire’ is my all-time favourite show. It takes its time, and it doesn’t spoon-feed the viewer.

If you think about it, there’s very little about young families on TV, and yet there’s so many of them.

I think, so often, women play supporting roles or girlfriends or wives – they’re there to support a man’s journey.

I don’t know any woman who’s one dimensional, not a single one.

When I was filming in Budapest for ITV’s ‘Titanic,’ I realised I’d never been to the ballet before so decided to see a production of ‘Giselle.’ I went on my own. As it was my first ballet, it was a very bizarre and interesting experience but very enjoyable.

If you’re aware of a pattern, you can do something about it, and you can be aware of your own culpability. I like to think I can do that, but, like everyone else, I’m a work in progress.

I wouldn’t do really gratuitous nudity. When I was in my late teens, you’d read stuff and be like, ‘That character serves no purpose except being naked’, so that would not be something I’d want to do. It’s pointless for me.

In life, with my friends, I don’t see them as male or female; I just see them as people.

I consider myself lucky to be going about my business doing something I love.

Very often, as an actress, there’s some kind of stereotype, but with any good script, you should be able to swap the genders of all the characters, and it shouldn’t make a huge difference.

A friend of mine told me she’s going to freeze her eggs, and I thought, ‘Well, I also don’t want to be a 55-year-old first time mother,’ so you kind of just have to go with what happens.

In secondary school, I became aware of the idea of being cool, and that was a bit of a shell shock.

There is so much room for gender-neutral characters.

I think when you work with older actors, who are so good, it’s rare that they are egotistical.

I really enjoy ‘Mad Men,’ but I’m hugely into ‘Homeland.’ The characters are very well drawn and complex.

I’m only ambitious in the sense that I want to work in as many different media as I can and to play characters which are different to me and to each other. I want to do work that frightens me or challenges me, be it in Dublin or Zimbabwe. I just want to be working.

All too often, female characters, in particular, aren’t multi-layered enough.

I love working in Dublin, but when I’m in London, I’m more focused on my career.