Una Stubbs talking about the people who have inspired her the most through her life.

Rebecca Blond

I feel very lucky to have her as my agent; she’s a strong and funny woman. Sometimes people will say, “Your agent is tough,” and I think, “Yes, she is. But only as an agent, not as a human being.”

Fyodor Dostoevsky 

What a writer. I always thought Crime and Punishment was completely out of my league but then discovered it is a real page-turner. I used to get up in the middle of the night to read another chapter and it made me quiver, like watching a fantastic film that grips you.

Michael Grandage 

He cast me as Hester in The Deep Blue Sea and has encouraged me ever since. A lot of directors will say Shakespeare has to be done in a certain way but he used to tell me to just say the words because if you have rhythm in yourself it will come out in the way you speak the verse.

Kathleen Daisy Rawlinson

My gran was very funny and a little bit naughty too. When we listened to the radio, if the jokes were smutty she would giggle for ages – tears pouring down her face.

Dougie Squires 

The choreographer and director has been one of my closest friends for 50 years. He is immensely loyal, wise and kind, and was especially brilliant when I was bringing up my boys.

From Seven, The Sunday Telegraph magazine, published September 23 2012.