I was very much into science when I was young - I wanted to be a marine biologist, then I wanted to be a doctor, and then something else, I was always changing. Acting didn't come up until much later, probably about 16 or 17. I thought, "Oh, I quite like this."

Freema Agyeman

Categorized in : Acting Marine Biologist

I'm fully aware that 'Doctor Who' will always, always be part of my life, and that's not something I would run away from in the slightest. I wear it with pride, definitely.

Freema Agyeman

doctors pride running

I swing between procrastination and being really thorough so either way things aren't getting done quickly.

Freema Agyeman

swings procrastination done

I love hotels for their solitude and comfort, but I believe a seedy one can have as much promise as a plush one.

Freema Agyeman

solitude believe promise

I found a lot of comfort in the fact that 30-odd people have been companions before me. I think that when there are so many people contributing so many things to the show, all you can do is make it your own. You can't try to emulate anyone, because who would you pick? The companions are very much the everyman, and the audience watches the story through their eyes, so they could be the person next door. And everybody's different.

Freema Agyeman

eye people thinking

I was very much into science when I was young - I wanted to be a marine biologist, then I wanted to be a doctor, and then something else, I was always changing.

Freema Agyeman

marine doctors young

My own style is one of not much effort.

Freema Agyeman

my-own effort style

I went to a very academic school that actually - when I got to the point of wanting to pursue acting, they just had no idea how to do that, because all of their contacts were very academic.

Freema Agyeman

acting ideas school

Whether people watch Doctor Who or not over here, everybody knows about it. It's a British icon, it's so part of the nation.

Freema Agyeman

doctor-who people

I'm one of these people that if I have a nice holiday - like I have had in Turkey repeatedly - I go back a lot.

Freema Agyeman

turkeys holiday nice

I'm not very glamorous.

Freema Agyeman

glamorous

I used to be absolutely addicted to the gym and I do still love it.

Freema Agyeman

used-to-be gym used

Nobody in my family is in the show business, and none of my friends were. I went to a very academic school that actually - when I got to the point of wanting to pursue acting, they just had no idea how to do that, because all of their contacts were very academic.

Freema Agyeman

my-family acting school

I've had journalists beg me to please say something negative about my estate.

Freema Agyeman

estates please negative

I only unwind at facials and massages.

Freema Agyeman

unwind massage

I know it's really square but I'm one of those people who piles on the factor 50 as soon as I'm outside.

Freema Agyeman

squares knows people

I don't have an iPod! It's never appealed to me, really.

Freema Agyeman

ipods

I couldn't sustain myself if I skimped on food - I work 16-hour days, I need the energy, I can't afford to be stingy on what I eat.

Freema Agyeman

hours energy needs

I constantly make lists and itineraries and then can't stick to any of them.

Freema Agyeman

lists sticks

I went to University after my A levels and did a degree in performing arts. It was only when I got there that I realized there were stage schools out there, and you had your union and your contacts and The Spotlight and this whole world of the acting industry that I had no idea about. So when I graduated, I took a year out and just thought really hard about whether it was something I knew enough about, and whether it was the career I could dedicate the rest of my wacky life to.

Freema Agyeman

acting art school

I appreciate individualism.

Freema Agyeman

individualism appreciate