“Getting through the mid stage of your life with your dignity and judgment in tact can be somewhat precarious and sometimes all you need is a bit of gentle reassurance to keep on track. I don’t know if this qualifies as gentle reassurance, but right now this is all that stands between me and a Harley Davidson. I owe a very great debt to my supernaturally talented fellow cast members, my exquisite no-nonsense Queen Helena, and my wayward royal older brother Guy. Geoffrey Rush and Tom Hooper, my two other sides of a surprisingly robust triangle of man-love, somehow moved forward in perfect formation for the last year and a half or so. Tom with his scorching intelligence and Geoffrey who has now become my true friend and geisha girl. David Sidler, I know the value of longevity in my relationships, Harvey Weinstein has made an improbable number of good films. We have had 20 years together, which is not bad going for a showbiz marriage. Thank you, Harvey. But the very best thing of all has been Livia, and all the beautiful things she’s given me and I think I can cope with just about any age as long as I can still see her.”

- Colin Firth’s acceptance speech for Best Actor