I`m a hard-mouthed north-eastern lad. That`s me - the Eminem of Northeast England.

Learning my skill was more important than getting a big pay cheque or running away from big robots.

I think it would have ruined my life. Can you imagine going back to school on Tuesday after winning an Oscar? You`d be nuts. It`s unsafe in this industry for a young person. You need to be protected and to keep good people around you. - On missing out an Academy Award nomination for Billy Elliott.

but it`s nice when big stars come over and say, `Great job.`

It`s very much an ensemble film — I can`t stress that enough because all the actors I worked with are all tremendous, ... Many different things happen within the film, the characters kind of intertwine and by the end, they come to the same level and connect. So it`s hard to explain, but basically it`s about dysfunctional youth and families in suburban America.

(It`s true that) most British movies are emotional and I agree that most American actors look manufactured. It`s a shame.

[on why he continued pursuing ballet despite the mockery] - "The other boys called me `poof`, `ballerina boy`, "Get on your tutu, Jamie." It gave me more determination to prove it wasn`t just for girls. It was for boys as well."

(why he picks roles based on directors) "I love looking down my résumé and seeing all those great people on it like David Gordon Green, and of course Peter Jackson and Stephen Daldry. When I look at it, I feel very proud for myself and the people around me who have managed to get me these roles."

I think I became my own person dealing with my mother and sister. I never had a father figure so I never missed it. In fact, I thought it would be just another person to discipline me.

I can understand why everyone sees me as Billy Elliot; it was the first thing I did, so I was determined to take the most diverse route possible. It wasn`t to annoy people, but it seems to have upset so many people.

I can appreciate the spotlight and pressure Heath was under. There is a feeling that, however supportive your family is, you are very much on your own in this business. I cannot pretend to know what was going on in his life. I can imagine how he felt. The film business is wonderful and I love it. But the flip side is that the expectations are very big . . . don`t get ill and don`t get depressed. - On Heath Ledger and the pressures of working too much.

It makes no real difference because he was never there. Never having it (support from father), you don`t really miss it. (My mother) raised me and my sister herself. That was incredibly difficult.

[assured fans he won`t suffer the same fate] "I wouldn`t do a Macaulay. I have sensible people around me. I see this industry as a risky business. The money thing has always been in my control. I have always had people looking after it for me. I do love buying things - stupid gadgets. I`ll say, `I want one of them.` But I do the sensible thing, knuckle down, do some good work and keep a low profile."

The young generation of actors are lazy. They don`t do any work. They turn up, and say their lines. I would rather get better at what I do.

It was mostly the kids that I didn`t really know that said `girlie-boy`

Inner demons? Got none of them. I had teen angst for a while, but I think every teenager has the angst.

(Billy Elliot (2000)) got that (R-rating) because of the swearing. But it wouldn`t be what it was without the swearing, kids need to swear.

I hate maths. I can`t stand it. Circumferences of circles and stuff - it`s horrible.

[on winning awards, after he won the British Academy award] "It`s just an award although it is a big one. It is no good getting too big-headed. I`ve been very busy and I`m very tired. I`ve been given advice, you know on speech-making and things like that. It`s kind of weird that the other guys didn`t win because they`re such big guys."

I know people think that if you`ve had success young you`re going to blow it, but did you see Batman, did you see Christian Bale? He`s so on top of his game. I`ve worked with a Culkin - Rory, he`s a totally centered guy and he`s something ridiculous, like 15. Whatever happened with Macaulay I don`t know. The kid isn`t messed up. Something happens to the kid to make them messed up. People are not born messed up. Things happen. People should be more sensitive.

The idea of it is that these kids are all pacifists but have this obsession with guns, so it`s a bit contradictory in the subject matter,

Ballet is very hard. It takes a lot of practice to get to a certain standard. You have to know a lot about the steps because when you take examinations they`ll ask you all about it.

I think what`s important is that you keep on changing, ... You show people your range and show them what you can do. You keep people guessing.

He got bullied a lot afterwards. He`s really nice and he`s been telling me what to do.

(on Hollywood) "I go because that`s where the work is, but I like, use and abuse. I fly in for the meetings, then fly out. That community is really small, so everybody knows each other. I kind of don`t like that. It`s not really a community I feel very welcome in."

He`s similar to Dean but goes through a little bit more of a transition, ... At the beginning, he is very closed-in and isolated, but then he finds his gun [and names it] Wendy — which he basically falls in love with. And it`s called `Dear Wendy` because he is writing these letters to the gun all the time. And he finds that this gun makes him become more powerful, and he kind of becomes a bigger person — he can look people in the eye and becomes a lot more confident and things like that. And then, really, what the film takes on is about people finding their inner self.

It`s fortunate that I don`t have to live with being Ballet Boy any more. After this I`ll be called the nipple-circling dress-wearer or Rat Boy. - On his character Hallem Foe.

It`s bizarre, because you`d kind of expect it to happen at the end but it happens right at the beginning, ... And throughout the film you kind of see my character constantly trying to get something off his chest, only his family and all the adults around him are oblivious to their kids and what their kids need. So there`s this yearning for someone to listen to what his problem is.

You probably won`t see me dance in the movies again unless there`s a `Moulin Rouge 2` or `Chicago Returns`.