Lesley Manville can't wait to kiss Mark Strong "eight times a week"

She told The Mirror: "I'm looking forward to kissing Mark Strong on stage eight times a week."

Leslie also revealed her ambition to play Meryl Streep's younger sister, saying: "I want to play Meryl Streep's younger sister, and I think I could! She is great. She seems like a really good laugh."

Leslie also revealed she didn't have a lot of confidence at the beginning of her career and was left feeling "exposed and vulnerable" when working on 1981 play 'Rita, Sue And Bob Too', about a man sleeping with two underage teenagers.

She said: "We were very exposed. Our modesty was kind of intact but vulnerable. It should have been different but it wasn't unusual for that time."

However, things have changed and Leslie is happy that women of all ages are now portrayed as "fabulous" on stage and screen.

She said: "Women are seeing actresses of an age being fabulous. I don't dress inappropriately but I want the freedom to dress how I'd like.

"Fortunately, some parts that I now play represent women who are able to say I am this age, yes I'm still sexually active, yes I want to dress how I want, yes I want to be thought of bold and brave and outrageous if we want to be. It's so boring otherwise."