"Tabloids invoke freedom of speech, but they're not interested in that, they're just interested in who's shagging whom, who's got drunk. And if you take that pretend, faux moral standpoint, you end up with people in public life being completely boring. Like they've had their genitals removed."

"Whilst something is unknown, it could be anything. It could be the worst thing ever and usually when something starts to happen. You realise it’s not so bad."

"Everybody's a bit screwed up, you know. You can take it as symptoms of a disorder, or you can take it as personality. Me, I'd rather think it as parts of personality."

"There isn't much I find interesting to write about in middle-class life."

"Pornography takes all the reality out of sex and Disney does that to family life."

"Even if I was really prolific — which I'm not — I think I'd always put at least a couple of covers on my record. I think it's a sort of healthy thing to do. It shows that you're not totally self-obsessed."

"I pick myself up off the ground to have you knock me back down Again and again and when I ask you to explain You say, you've got to be... Cruel to be kind in the right measure Cruel to be kind it's a very good sign Cruel to be kind means that I love you Baby, you got to be cruel, you got to be cruel to be kind."

"I've always felt quite like an outsider. I don't really belong in the mainstream, and I quite like that."

"I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll."

"So where are the strong And who are the trusted? And where is the harmony? Sweet harmony — 'cause each time I feel it slippin away, it just makes me wanna cry: What's so funny 'bout Peace, Love, and Understanding?"

"And so it goes and so it goes But where it's goin' no one knows."

"You know, the actual punk music, I didn't care for at all. I thought it was all rubbish, really. It was the attitude, the way that things were being shaken up, that excited me more. I still liked people who were good, you know? Who could actually play. Even though The Damned were a punk group, they played great. As did Elvis, and as did Ian. They were the ones who interested me. Not some of those daft punkers, especially the ones who had people who were actually pretty good musicians sort of pretending to play badly. That was just so stupid, and missed the point completely, I thought. So it was the people who were true to themselves, I think, that were the exciting ones."

"As I walk through This wicked world Searchin' for light in the darkness of insanity, I ask myself Is all hope lost? Is there only pain and hatred, and misery? And each time I feel like this inside, Theres one thing I wanna know: What's so funny 'bout Peace, Love, and Understanding?"

"Life is a drink and you get drunk when you're young."

"It's so hard to understand why the world is your oyster but your future's a clam."

"If we get through for two minutes only it will be a start!"

"The morning slips away in a Valium haze and catalogues, And numerous cups of coffee, In the afternoon the weekly food is put in bags - as you float off down the high street. The shop windows reflect, play a nameless host to a closet ghost - A picture of your fantasy, a victim of your misery..."

"The fingers feel the lines, they prod the space - your ageing face, The face that was once so beautiful, is still there but unrecognisable..."

"A whole street's belief in Sunday's roast beef gets dashed against the Co-op, To either cut down on beer or the kids' new gear, it's a big decision in a town called malice."

"Two lovers kissing amongst the screams of midnight, Two lovers missing the tranquility of solitude."

"If you gave me a fresh carnation, I would only crush its tender petals..."

"Those braying sheep on my TV screen - Make this boy shout! Make this boy scream!"

"You'll see kidney machines replaced by rockets and guns - And the public wants what the public gets - but I don't get what this society wants."

"Days of speed and slow time Mondays - Pissing down with rain on a boring Wednesday..."

"I am out of season all years round - watch machinery roar to my empty sound. Touch my heart and feel winter, hold my hand and be doomed forever."

"I first felt a fist - and then a kick, I could now smell their breath, They smelt of pubs - and Wormwood Scrubs - and too many right-wing meetings."

"The more I see - the more I know, The more I know, the less I understand."

"If you see me in the street - look away, 'cause I don't want to ever catch you looking at me, Mr Clean. 'Cause I hate you and your wife, and if I get the chance I'll fuck up your life."

"When you're knocked on your back and you life's a flop, When you're down on the bottom and there's nothing else but to shout to the top!"

"The lords and ladies pass a ruling That sons and girls go hand in land From good stock and the best breeding Paid for by the servile class."

"Is happiness real? Or am I so jaded I can't see or feel - like a man been tainted. Numbed by the effect - aware of the muse Too in touch with myself - I light the fuse."

"Some people might say my life is in a rut, but I'm quite happy with what I've got."

"If you're wondering by now who I am, look no further than the mirror, Because I am the greed and fear - and every ounce of hate in you."

"I play out my role, I've even been out walking - They tell me that it helps, but I know when I'm beaten..."

"She is probably the best vocalist right now, in our time. [...] Around the world, I have seen her play live, and oh my goodness gracious, she just has the most angelic, amazing range ever."

"She's a supreme perfectionist and knows her own voice better than any artist I've ever worked with. She's like a scientist when it comes to working in the studio."

"I recorded Jimmy Page and Leona Lewis performing Whole Lotta Love by Led Zeppelin together... For me there were several moments that still seem a little unreal [like] realising just how technically and musically accomplished Leona Lewis is as an artist. I've not worked with many singers in the pop world who can discuss coloratura technique, and operas by Purcell and Bellini. [...] Leona can really sing with heart and soul, balanced with quite astounding technique."

"He [Simon Cowell] is actually very lovely in real life. We share the same interests, and he shares my love for animals as well."

"You have to have the courage to stand up for what you believe in – no matter how hard it is – as your beliefs make you who you are amid all the celeb madness. I'm a vegetarian and never wear leather or use products tested on animals. When I was just starting out I'd get a gazillion freebies thrown at me, so it was hard to know what contained what. Now, I've made sure that before I get to a photoshoot people know my stance on that."

"No one is "the next" anyone, especially if that person is still here, doing their thing, as she [Mariah] clearly is. The comparisons people have made to me are so flattering, but I think it's insensitive to the people I'm compared to."

"My friends are the ones I've had since primary school. They're really cool and such a good bunch of people. They came to every one of my gigs before all of this happened, you know; they were there in the smoky pubs, wherever."

"I went to Clive Davis' Grammy party and I nearly spontaneously combusted because everyone on my iPod was there!"

"Those women are the true divas. They're amazing performers, whom I've listened to for years. These are the people who've inspired me to sing, so it's flattering that I'm being compared to them. But I have a lot of hard work to do first."

"I'm trying to stay as healthy as possible but there's no pressure to be really skinny. No. That's just a bit wrong."

"I may not be loud but that doesn't mean I'm not strong within myself. My mum and dad instilled in me to stand up for what I believe in – and I do."

"Whatever happens to me from now on, I can't ever imagine wanting to distance myself from The X Factor, or having a bad word to say about it, because the show opened doors for me that had never opened before."

"I am vegetarian, so I don't have clothes, shoes or bags made from leather or suede or any animal products. Shoes are hard to find. These are fake Uggs. And I've got a pair of vintage boots, which are PVC."

"I hate the thought of animals being killed just for our pleasure..."

"I was at a really low point, thinking of going to university and doing a course because the music thing just wasn't happening for me. But I went on the show and..."

"I've had no demands, no weird requests for strange-colored water or cushions. She's exactly the same person I met two years ago."