Jodie Whittaker: 'I'm currently working nights, till 2am. It's like having jet lag'

Whittaker says: 'People who take pride in ignorance infuriate me' (Dan Burn-Forti)

Playing opposite Peter O'Toole terrified me I was the female lead in Venus in 2006, having only recently finished drama school, and I'd never been on a film set before; I was woefully underqualified. If I went to work for a bank, I wouldn't get to be the bank manager on my second week – the film industry is not like the real world!

You wouldn't recognise me if I sat next to you on a bus I'm lucky as I get to work in the film industry but I don't have the hassle of paparazzi waiting for me at market stalls. My field is independent cinema and TV. It would probably different if I had the lead in a film such as Inception or The Hobbit.

A lot of my characters cry I've played a young mother whose son is murdered in [upcoming ITV drama] Broadchurch, and I've had the role of Antigone at the National Theatre. But I don't ever pretend; it's not like someone clicks their fingers and says, "Act upset." I really get upset, because the situation facing the character is upsetting.

You become public property if something happens and the media covers it Broadchurch, which is about a small community coming to terms with a murder, is based on a number of real murder cases and with all of them you see how the media coverage has such an impact on the grieving parents. Even when standing in front of the cameras, you have viewers and the media giving opinions on how they ought to be grieving.

Night shoots are a trauma I'm currently shooting a dark comedy called Hello Carter, which is set over one night, so I've spent a whole week wrapping up warm and working till 2am. It's like having jet lag.

I hate passive aggression People cause more drama by not saying how they feel at the time; I get so wound up when someone comes up to me two or three weeks after I've inadvertently upset them and they'll say, in that odd, different tone of voice, "Just so you know: I'm not annoyed, but I'm just saying the other week you did this…" I prefer direct confrontation.

People who take pride in ignorance infuriate me When you're having a discussion and someone says, "I don't know about that – I don't read books." Well that's brilliant, you really should be proud of not knowing about the culture of others – what an exciting world you live in!

I get excited by wine lists I love reading through them then trying a new wine. The first time I tried a bottle that didn't taste like acid was when I was 18 and working at a restaurant. I tried half a bottle sent back by a customer. It was called Isabel, a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. It's not sold in many places so when I find it now, it's like, bloody hell, they've got it, I have to have it!

Jodie Whittaker, 30, has appeared in films including 'Venus', 'Attack the Block' and 'St Trinian's', and in TV shows including costume drama 'Cranford'. She appears in ITV drama 'Broadchurch' soon