"It’s great being back on set. We all understand that we need this job in order to make ends meet so everyone is cooperating to the rules. It is quite tricky acting with masks on because now our eyes need to tell the story, which is a great challenge"

"I respond to people as myself. People need to know that I am not my character and we are different. That person is on screen, and this is me, and they need to deal with me"

"To be able to keep a character interesting every day requires a lot of new answers that you must incorporate now and then because we evolve as humans"

"Art, to me, is what oxygen is to humans. Without art, I’d be living and existing but not alive"

"You have to believe and trust in yourself and your craft. Never mess up your opportunity, show up and deliver"

"Also, when you walk into your workplace, leave all your problems and emotions at the doorstep and bring only your polite character and personality."

"I’ve learnt to always be ready because a dream can happen in five minutes just from an audition and getting casted"

"People can say what they want, they can suggest and even strongly suggest, but at the end of the day if I choose to go with what they suggest and I live like that then I’ll be the one living like that, not them"

"I rarely got it right the first time. I didn’t understand it. I didn’t know why they were telling me to say things that weren’t true. The teachers would try convincing me and told me it was just acting but I didn’t know what was going on. It took me a while but every year I was in the plays and that’s when I started getting familiar with acting"

"didn’t go to school for acting and I’ve never had a lesson in my life but when I was in primary and high school I was in all the plays. In Grade 9, when I was supposed to choose subjects, I wanted to take Drama but my parents were like ‘No honey, we are not paying for you to play games on a stage"

"At times, I cried because I knew about poverty but when I experienced it for the first time, it became real. During takes and getting my make-up done I’d literally just start crying because the story felt so real."

"Soul City was an eye-opener because before we started shooting I had never been in a shack before"

"As a survivor of GBV, I accept that telling these stories is a part of my ministry and that it’s not something I have to erase after I engage in the material"

"It’s important for us to see ourselves reflected in the entertainment industry, films, series and documentaries we watch and the books we read"

"I don’t shed anything. It’s more of a case of incorporating all my life’s realities into the picture and finding a way to accept the multiple truths that exist for me"

"I love adventure, risk and the opportunity to learn something new about myself and the world I live in"

"That's how I got my first draw in this business. You have to stay ready to be called up any time. It happens quite a lot, that is the spontaneity of the business"

"Â Just keep going,donâ€™t give up on your goals and dreams"

"Some people just come into your life and make it all better."

"Sending prayers of love to everyone who suffers from depression."

"Losing a child is an unimaginable ordeal, a pain that only those who have experienced it can truly comprehend"

"Don’t for one second assume I will entertain people badmouthing my bosses, so if you have something negative to say about them, don’t bring it in my mentions please. Let’s respect each other. Hands off the Fergusons,” she wrote at one point"

"The wealth of wisdom and knowledge you exude and lovingly give to those who care to listen. Thank you for not being selfish and for giving time for little old me you are highly appreciated, now book, or kanjani Connie Ferguson"

"I have to go back to that little girl that got hurt and heal her. I’m happy I decided to fight this. I’m not an expert but I’m learning and I’m on a journey of healing"

"I’ve been fighting depression and anxiety all my life by 'managing' and 'controlling' it, by simply blocking traumatic experiences I’ve encountered since I was a young girl. I attempted suicide twice in my life because I just did not want to be here and feel this pain any more"

"It was an anxiety attack, but this time I was not letting it get to me. I picked up the phone called my sister and a close friend to let them know that I’m not OK, and that simple act of calling someone was me fighting"

"I woke up one day last week and I couldn’t take it any more! I was overwhelmed with traumatic incidents I encountered and all the thoughts in my head the last couple of months. I cried so much I couldn’t breathe and I had a severe headache throughout this episode"

"Obviously people are always recognising me and I am often stopped by fans but half the time I forget about the fame and go about my life as Nobuhle. It is never in my head. I just react to fans in the moment. I go with the flow"

"The thing is we all go through such things, and you think you are the only one going through it. There are so many people going through stuff and the more we talk about it, the better"

"This week was emotionally hard on me. From sitting on the floor in the shower naked, crying my lungs out because I felt I made bad choices in my life, that I’m not good enough, to doubting myself and basically tearing myself apart from all angles."

"Choose happiness"

"Sometimes, I tell my mom that she should have written me little notes on what to expect at certain points in my life. I was just contemplating life and my personal journey"

"Remember, body positivity is not just about big girls, it’s about different shapes and sizes of our bodies and how to love ourselves best"

"Because I am an actress, I know how to debrief, leave the character and move on with my life"

"I am proud of me, because Afrikaans is my third language and working on an Afrikaans show for the past 18 years has been nothing but amazing and challenging, as I had to make sure that I put in the work, and I do not drop the ball"

"It was therefore important for me to show that Aggie has grown from this facet of her life to that one. I have used the technique of bringing in different new answers and attending classes with my acting coach"

"I guess they saw the tape from 2014 and remembered me. It was sort of a call back. I just did two very light scenes and was in. Scandal! is one of the shows that I've always wanted to be part of"

"Some just watch to be on the look out for the next pretty girl. It's not a bad thing. I'm getting more following on social media. It's nice to be appreciated"

"No, personally I don't think I'm the sexiest but it's a compliment. I don't know what to say, these are overpowering comments. I'm meant to take the character to greater heights and that's exactly what I'm doing"

"If I have a baby, if God gives me the strength and the patience, I always like to raise my baby up to one year before I can start hustling - just to bond because this industry by the time you get back on the horse, it gets hectic and you may never be there as much as you would like to."

"Depression is real and I am opening up for the first time about abuse and depression."

"There is no formula as to how to keep yourself sane. It’s important to talk about it when you’re ready but we need to address it because people think I am the only one…the glowing people are most probably the ones hiding something."

"You need to find a mirror and ask: Do you love yourself? For you to stick around there must be a problem and it’s okay – we all have problems."

"I don’t succumb to cliques. I can’t have that kind of pressure. My friendships have to be natural or really meaningful with people who share my vision‚ especially spiritually. The energy has to feel right and I think that has helped me not lose who I am in this often chaotic industry."

"Look‚ you get frustrated when you keep going at something and it doesn’t materialise‚ but for me that is when I stop and reflect. I check what this could mean for me‚ like working on my craft‚ checking my spirit and building that hunger to succeed when I do get the role."

"Let's change the narrative, change mindsets and challenge the stereotypical ideas of what beauty is ... May we change lives together and create a new narrative for women across our beautiful continent."

"I love being African and l love African women, celebrating all that we are and encompass, so I’m inviting women across the entire continent, married, divorced or widowed, to fetch their lives and enter Mrs Universe Africa."

"We’ve always believed that our platforms are bigger than us. “Influence” comes with responsibility.... As couples, we need to create healthy environments within our homes to start having these hard conversations honestly. Change can only come when we face this head-on"

"We dated for about two years before we got married. When we started dating we both felt that we needed to give our relationship a fair chance. Building a new relationship is hard, and when it's done in the public eye it's 10 times harder."

"But when people emotionally connect with what you’re trying to do, or it resonates with them, that’s a huge reward."