I'm quite an emotional person... I ain't just this Northern brat all the time.
I used to be mouthy. It was all to do with being a northerner and from Manchester, which was suddenly a big deal when I was in my 20s. When I read some of the interviews I did back then, I cringe.
I was always the shame of the family - the one Yankee who was actually born in the North.
There is something so quiet and so industrious, something so Viking about the Scots.
I certainly wouldn't define myself as a northerner. I'm not even really sure what that means. I've lived in London for 50 years. I wasn't born here, but I have spent most of my life here. So I don't make much of it, to be honest. I'm just myself.
The more cynical commentators on our careers would say that the northern accent has been the basis of our success. There's a certain authenticity to the voice - which isn't to my credit; I was just born there.
But I am Northern myself, and there is a certain rhythm of Northern speech that is very comical: that combination of the choice of language and the speech rhythm, which in itself is very funny.
Really, I still just think of myself as a Northerner, ultimately. It's in my DNA. I'll always have those Northern qualities. We can be mischievous. We can be bold.
