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" My black hero is and always will be Martin Luther King, not just because of the strength of his oratory but because his vision was very much the reality that I'd come to take for granted. "

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" I hope my kids can experience the seasons and a climate that's sustainable. The idea that things are going to be so very different for them is slightly scary. "

David Harewood

Going

Seasons

Scary

" British people are surprised that I'm British! It's extraordinary, I get tweets every day from British people saying, 'I had no idea you were British.' "

" For all its problems, I found South Africa a beautiful country, interesting and inspiring. "

" I always get this feeling on my last day of work that I'm never going to work again. "

" Two years after drama school, I had a nervous breakdown: I heard voices, and the voice I heard in my head was Martin Luther King's. "

" I was in a number of school plays, one in particular, when I was 13 or 14, entitled 'Illusions.' It was put together by one of the teachers, and was about famous historical figures. I had to do the Martin Luther King 'I have a dream' speech, and some black women in the audience were clapping and crying and whooping. "

" It's pretty hard to stand in the queue auditioning to play a gynaecologist on 'Holby City' when you've just played Mandela. You think, 'Actually, I want to challenge myself.' "

" We all know the wonders of Skype, but there's nothing like getting a hug from your daughters or taking them to school. "

" American television, for all its faults, still has a black presence in shows and even in commercials. You'll see black people in automobile ads, black women starring on their own television shows. We don't see that on British television. "

" We don't like talking about race in the U.K. - it's a very sensitive subject. People get extremely defensive and run for the covers, but I believe we have to talk about it. "

" I was lucky to get into drama school and become a professional actor. No-one ever mentioned the colour of my skin. It's only when I came out of RADA - the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art - that I suddenly realised people started to refer to me as a black actor. "

" As an ambassador for the aid agency Cafod and the Anthony Nolan Trust, I need to be sure that my public support for those charities is a help for their work, not a hindrance. "

" The area where I grew up in Birmingham was very diverse - I was aware of my race but not overly aware of it - and there seemed to be an understanding that we were all very much in the same boat. "

David Harewood

Race

Understanding

" When my agent told me I had an audition for 'Friar Tuck,' I burst out laughing. It actually brought a bit of sunshine to my day. I was thinking: fat suit. I was thinking: shaving my head. It was so outlandish, such a crazy idea. "

" People come up and say very nice things about my work, like, 'You were great in 'Blood Diamond!' "

" It would be extraordinary if the BBC were to make me the first black 'Doctor Who;' it would be extraordinary. "

" After 'Homeland,' I was offered a lot of very authoritarian, square, angry boss types, but I wanted to do something different. Casting directors are surprised when they look at my CV and see all the work I've done, from Shakespeare to playing Nelson Mandela. "

" The idea that people are watching me now is a bit unnerving, but I suppose it comes with the territory. It is, perhaps, the modern side of celebrity. "

" I've been on 'Mastermind' - I tied for first place and then lost on the number of passes. My subject was the 'His Dark Materials' trilogy by Philip Pullman. If I did it again, I'd choose Shakespearian tragedies. "

" If you're black and have leukemia, the chances of finding a donor are drastically reduced. I added my name to the register, and lo and behold, six months later, I was asked to donate. I had a week of 'conditioning' where I had to take these pills and injections to create new stem cells in my body. "

" On 'Supergirl,' there are huge characters with huge mythologies behind them. What's important is that you don't lock yourself into something. "

" Growing up, I really looked up to the classic Hollywood actors like Spencer Tracy, Robert Mitchum, and Peter Falk. I love character actors - I've never wanted to be the leading guy. "

David Harewood

Growing Up

Character

" I'd love to talk with Martin Luther King, just to hear his voice up close and be with someone who had such faith. He had such power. "

" I'm very fortunate. I loved school and, when I went there, race, gangs and violence were not issues. There was a feeling, gone now, that you had to be presentable. If you hadn't combed your hair, older black ladies - complete strangers - would come up to you in the street and pull out a comb and straighten your tie. "

" There are countless fantastic actors out there who are being denied the opportunity to play Broadway because they're not a name, and I think that's kind of wrong. "

" Support for charities takes many forms. Some people give their money, some their spare time. I give my name and my voice. We give what we can to make a difference to the people and issues that matter to us. But what's most important, especially for celebrities, is giving our genuine commitment. "

" We live in a world of strange priorities, where Kim Kardashian buying a Lamborghini creates international headlines, but children in Niger suffering from drought and children in Britain suffering from leukaemia go unnoticed. "

David Harewood

Live

Suffering

" I remember coming back to the U.K. after spending five months in Charlotte for 'Homeland,' and I just found myself just wandering around London. There's nothing like it - the buildings, the architecture, the sense of history, the sense of culture - there really is nothing like it. "

" Studio heads seem to be getting the message that there is not only an audience out there, but there is a desire for people to see people of colour in central roles and in authoritative roles. "

" We have a generation of black actors playing leading roles on film and TV - Idris Elba, Chiwetel Ejiofor - which is great and is breaking the mould. "