Latest role. Playing Miss Havisham in the PBS miniseries Great Expectations. I love getting paid to be a nut job.

On moving between America and Britain, where I live now. I was born in the United States, spent my formative years in the United Kingdom, then moved to Michigan when I was 11. Initially I was excited about the adventure. I didn’t take into account how much my Britishness would set me apart.

What’s British and what’s American about me. I was just in Los Angeles and the sun was shining and I was smiling a lot. I feel like I’m a nicer person when I’m in America. The British side of me is grumpier.

The difference between raising boys and girls. Night and day. With my sons [Oscar, 5, and Felix, 3], if there’s something to climb, it will be climbed; if there’s something to break, it will be broken; if there’s something on a surface, they will knock it off. When my daughter [Piper, 17] was young, all she wanted to do was color.

Costar with whom I’ve had the most chemistry.  It has to be David Duchovny on The X-Files. There was nothing—including ourselves—that could get in the way of it.

Favorite retreat. Anybody else’s home. The only time I can relax is when I’m not anywhere near things to be done. Sitting around someone else’s pool equals magazine time.