RICHARD DORMER

I had an outfit that was designed for minus 30 degrees, so I had to work with costume to strap ice packs all over me because I was boiling, even out on the glacier. I was constantly trying to unzip it and take off the hat. I was just sweating. I found it very hot.

When I was 16, my friends were in a drama group, and they asked me to join. I said no, I'm not interested, that it's not really for me.

The first director I ever worked with on 'Thrones,' he had a big hand in casting me. He said he cast me because there was a bit of an Alec Guinness about me, but a very dangerous Alec Guinness.

I grew up with the idea that someone might hate you if they knew what religion you were; being afraid to open my mouth because my accent might make people think something about me. Or even if they didn't, would they understand me?

It's a real luxury to be able to develop with your character.

Having a weapon like that means you're pretty much in control of events. Nobody's going to argue with a flaming sword.

I think the benefit of being a writer is that I'm looking for the subtext on the page, because all good writing has subtext. And as a writer, you look at the big scope of things, the big story, rather than just your individual story line, because I think it's important to know what you're in and how you fit into it.

When you get out onto a glacier that's the size of Northern Ireland and it's so vast, and you're standing on top of it and you can see forever, it's so pure and clear that you can see for miles and miles and miles. You really do think, "Wow, there is a god!" You feel very humbled.

Gene Roddenberry is one of the greatest guys who ever lived because he gave us hope that the future might be bright and we could accept one another for whoever we were, even if we were alien. That's an amazing message, don't you think?

'Fortitude' is like the world in microcosm. It's like watching America or Russia, only you're isolated. Once you're inside, you can't escape.

In scale, 'Fortitude' is just as big as 'Game of Thrones.' It's equally as epic - it's just starting out.

I think, as a writer, you see the big picture, and as an actor, you're thinking of all the minutiae, all the very small details.

There was that sense that as soon as a Northern Irish person opens their mouth, you go, 'Ah, terrorist,' so I refused to do TV and film. Instead, I did theatre for 20 years.

When I was 16, my friends were in a drama group, and they asked me to join. I said no, I'm not interested, that it's not really for me.

Sometimes you even start to sound like the character because you're living and breathing them every day on the set. It gets into your bones.

As soon as people really get into the swamp - the scary swamp that is 'Fortitude' - there's no getting out of it. You need about six to seven episodes in to really go, 'This is what it's about.'

I could live in a community like 'Fortitude.'

Gene Roddenberry is one of the greatest guys who ever lived because he gave us hope that the future might be bright and we could accept one another for whoever we were, even if we were alien. That's an amazing message, don't you think?

I grew up with the idea that someone might hate you if they knew what religion you were; being afraid to open my mouth because my accent might make people think something about me. Or even if they didn't, would they understand me?

Having a weapon like that means you're pretty much in control of events. Nobody's going to argue with a flaming sword.

So much Western storytelling comes from Scandinavia. I've read that in the past, storytellers would travel to Iceland and exchange stories. It's kind of the birthplace of great storytelling.

I think the benefit of being a writer is that I'm looking for the subtext on the page, because all good writing has subtext. And as a writer, you look at the big scope of things, the big story, rather than just your individual story line, because I think it's important to know what you're in and how you fit into it.

If you close one eye and imagine a bright light constantly in front of the other eye, your vision is compromised. You can only see about 30 percent of what you should be able to see.

'Fortitude' is like the world in microcosm. It's like watching America or Russia, only you're isolated. Once you're inside, you can't escape.

The first director I ever worked with on 'Thrones,' he had a big hand in casting me. He said he cast me because there was a bit of an Alec Guinness about me, but a very dangerous Alec Guinness.

I met David Croft. He was a man of few words. But he had great charisma.

When you're working with really good actors, it raises your own game and you get better.

I was fascinated by the world. I thought, "I just want to be a part of this world."

It's a real luxury to be able to develop with your character.

A lot of the time, because of the polar bears you're not allowed to go outside the door without your hunting rifle, even if it's to go to the local shop. The polar bears will come from nowhere, and you'll be eaten alive.

When you get out onto a glacier that's the size of Northern Ireland and it's so vast, and you're standing on top of it and you can see forever, it's so pure and clear that you can see for miles and miles and miles. You really do think, "Wow, there is a god!" You feel very humbled.

As a writer you see the big picture and how you can tell as one character, how your storyline is going to meet up with all these other storylines. And as an actor you're thinking of all the minutiae, all the very small details.

When you read something that good, it's terrifying because you're thinking, "Oh, god, what if I don't get this?"

I had an outfit that was designed for minus 30 degrees, so I had to work with costume to strap ice packs all over me because I was boiling, even out on the glacier. I was constantly trying to unzip it and take off the hat. I was just sweating. I found it very hot.