"Julia Child wrote, “One of the secrets, and pleasures, of cooking is to learn to correct something if it goes awry; and one of the lessons is to grin and bear it if it cannot be fixed.” Learning from our mistakes is one of the most important things we do, in and out of the kitchen. I’ve made many along the way and it’s an important reminder that we can accept them and treat them as an opportunity to grow. "

"I also read a book recently called Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. She's phenomenal, and she's written so many beautiful books. Purple Hibiscus was also quite moving, about a family - a daughter, and a brother, a mother and a father - and these deep, intricate details of their life and the complexities of it all. You find yourself falling in love with this family and really being taken on their journey, their heartbreak, and their secrets - it is a beautiful and amazing read."

"Although Mike Leigh’s family dramas, such as High Hopes and Secrets & Lies, have had a more apparent influence on my work, Naked is my favorite film of Leigh’s. It’s in my top ten favorite films ever made. It’s an exhausting odyssey that never gets the characters (or the viewer) home again. “Tell me, love, are you aware of the effect you have on the average mammalian, Mancunian, XY-ly chromosome, slavering, lusty male member of the species?” Now, that’s dialogue!"

"I enjoy reading epic stories from ancient history and in recent years have been reading abridged versions aloud to my kids. This epic poem was found on a series of ancient tablets from Mesopotamia written down over 4,000 years ago, and involves the central character Gilgamesh, an excessive and oppressive leader, and his arduous journey in pursuit of the secrets of immortality. His character evolves through his personal voyage towards accepting death, and you encounter so many tales that you recognize from history."