I was thrilled with how the first series of 'Sherlock' was received. It was such great fun to film, which makes it so rewarding when something you enjoy is so well received.

I remember very clearly someone saying, 'Don't shake hands with the cactus,' and I thought, 'Well, why not? What could possibly go wrong?' Shaking hands is a friendly gesture.

Pull the hair on my head the wrong way, and I would be on my knees begging for mercy. I have very sensitive follicles.

I'm a high-functioning sociopath, do your research.

Looking for happiness is a sure way to sadness, I think. You have to take each moment as it comes.

Enjoy the journey of life and not just the endgame. I'm also a great believer in treating others as you would like to be treated.

Being a posh actor in England you cannot escape the class-typing from whatever side you look at it.

The further you get away from yourself, the more challenging it is. Not to be in your comfort zone is great fun.

You come into this world as you leave it, on your own. It's made me want to live a life slightly less ordinary.

I keep myself amused and others confused

If you have an over-preoccupation with perception and trying to please people's expectations, then you can go mad.

Standards are not established by your proclamations they are established by your routines.

Sometimes it's more painful to draw to mind the good times

The church must become a breeding ground for deliverers

Never diagnosed the enemy before.

Science progresses best when observations force us to alter our preconceptions.

Morning is when I am awake and there is a dawn in me.

The essence of the contemporary monetary system is creation of money, out of nothing, by private banks’ often foolish lending.

To insist, even with Olympian assurance, that life appeared quite by chance and evolved in this fashion, is an unfounded supposition which I believe to be wrong and not in accordance with the facts.

Everybody loves to have things which please the palate put in their way, without trouble or preparation.

Luxury, like a minimum wage, is a relationship; it changes as we change.