Eight siblings, 11 fingers, no electricity . . . there was little in Brenda Blethyn's childhood that pointed to success, as she reveals to Sally Vincent.

From Hitler to Pinochet, Derek Jacobi is no stranger to playing monsters. But, he tells Sally Vincent, the role of John Mortimer's blind, domineering father is a different type of challenge.

She loved. And lost. And lost again. But then she wrote it all down, and romantic loss, Mavis Cheek tells Sally Vincent, became literary gain.

As a kid he wanted to be a missionary, make the world a better place. Instead, James McAvoy decided to be the best actor he could. But don't be fooled by the lovable rogues that have brought him fame - as Sally Vincent discovers, more than a bit of that boy remains.

American novelist Alison Lurie writes books 'so simple a cat or dog could understand them'. Yet there's also something darker, funnier and more truthful going on underneath. Interview by Sally Vincent.

When you love acting as much as John Hurt does - and some of his roles have been landmarks - there comes a time when you're better off forgetting the third bottle of wine, and maybe even the first, he tells Sally Vincent. It's one reason he's now rarely seen in Soho watering holes, but pretty much constantly on screen.

As a young man, Mark Strong wanted to be a lawyer, with a briefcase and a BMW and a snappy line in courtroom patter. He ended up an actor, playing wife-beaters, philanderers and vicious gangsters. Sally Vincent finds out what went right.

On the verge of publishing his fifth novel, has Philip Hensher finally found his place in the world? Sally Vincent finds out.

Jo Brand left it until her 40s to marry, have children and start writing novels. And somehow she doesn't seem so mouthy any more. Sally Vincent meets her.

Samira Makhmalbaf is 24, and already a veteran film-maker in Iran. She like things difficult, she tells Sally Vincent. For instance, her latest film, set in Afghanistan, is about a woman who sets aside her burka and plans to become president.

You might have thought that Benicio Del Toro had no chance in Hollywood: that paunch, that slouch, that mumble. And yet... Sally Vincent feels the force of his mega-watt charge.

With his 1996 film debut, Edward Norton earned the tag 'finest actor of his generation'. But he's not satisfied with being just an actor. It's too limiting, he says, and it leaves you with no control over your own destiny. That's why he's also a screenwriter, director and, he tells Sally Vincent, the reason why he's taken up flying.