It’s hell with that big beard and stuff. That’s the one bit I don’t like. Either you take out at lunch or you don’t eat. So I opted not to eat, ’cause having to put it on twice is horrific.

I sometimes worry that all the beautiful things have been made.

I’ve signed on for four movies, and I’ll do four. That’s easy. No complications there.

When you are new to the business, you think if you give a really bad performance, that’s one they will print. You will be judged. You just have to be brave.

My dad? He died when I was 19, which is a bad time for your dad to die, because there’s an awful lot of things you have to resolve with your parents past your teens if you’ve been a difficult teenager.

I love films where the world seems to be going a bit faster and everything’s a bit brighter and more in focus.

And I think he’s been very keen to do that.

See, what you’re meant to do when you have a mid-life crisis is buy a fast car, aren’t you? Well, I’ve always had fast cars. It’s not that. It’s the fear that you’re past your best. It’s the fear that the stuff you’ve done in the past is your best work.

Ninety percent of people’s nightmares is standing in front of 1,000 people. Did you know that? And having to speak. You would have thought it would have been a madman tying you up and taking your eyes out.

I mean, I’m obviously not one of those people who’s so beautiful women take their clothes off when I walk into the room. I didn’t become a star overnight.

I’ve already felt that I want to direct. Being an executive producer is like the best job in the world because you make all these executive decisions and then you leave the money to other people. You don’t have to be on set and counting beans.

I knew it was going to be enormous because of the number of people who bought the books, but, to be honest, I never thought it would be bigger than Bond. Never in a million years.

Believe me, my children have more stamina than a power station.

I’ve got two young kids. I don’t know what the future holds.

I think the shocking thing to discover is the owls are not stupid and very feral, very hard to train.

The person who comes up to you and makes the most noise and is the most intrusive is invariably the person in the room who has no respect for you at all, and it’s really all about them.

I had a very bad time with acid. I did that classic thing of looking in the mirror by mistake and seeing the devil. But I took it several times, because you always think that next time you might have the wonderful time that everyone else is having.

What you do is get the right director and the right screenwriter and the right cast. It’s a fantastic job.

Is it just me, or is the world full of beautiful women?

I just get the same stuff as I did before, but the price tag is much higher.

The backgrounds in Lord of the Rings are all explained.

Why is it trivia? People call it trivia because they know nothing and they are embarrassed about it.

That’s the trouble with anything which essentially has a lot of bits that are physically impossible: You’re left, stuck, in the studio. And that’s a shame. You’re making a movie. You don’t want it to stay put, you want it to be a movie – to move.

Crows are incredibly smart. They can be taught five things on the drop.

It’s hell with that big beard and stuff. That’s the one bit I don’t like. Either you take out at lunch or you don’t eat. So I opted not to eat, ’cause having to put it on twice is horrific.

It was quite instant that he wanted Harry’s approval. Did you notice that? And the children sort of rescued him this time. It’s a great turnabout. That’s what happens as your children get older. They do things for you, and it’s quite shocking when they do.