1. Is one of the most respected British actresses despite the fact she has had no acting training.
2. Awarded an honorary doctorate from St Andrews University in 2006.
3. Has an honorary degree From Oxford Brookes University.
4. The BBC programme "Girl Friday" (1994) in which Lumley was left to fend for herself on a desert island for 10 days, heralded a new reality TV genre, which spawned "Shipwrecked", "Survivor", etc.

"I like to keep up the image of smoking, only because it's getting such a bad press!"

"When you are in a country where nobody has ever seen television, people look at you with eyes that don't know who you are."

"I don't think men are that attracted by glamour. I think women are attracted by glamour. I think men are attracted by a sense of friendship."

"I've got lots of good friends. I could have affairs. I can read a book all night, put the cat on the end of the bed. I can pick up my passport and go to France. I don't have to ask anybody."