Shirley Bassey

Diamonds never leave you... men do!

I decided to retire from show business at the age of 17, because I didn't like it a bit.

I hate it when people come up to me when I'm eating.

I'm a virgin and I brought up all my children to be the same.

I've always been the breadwinner and men don't like that. They turn on you. They bite the hand that feeds them. Eventually, too, they become very jealous of the love one has with an audience.

It's hard for a man to live with a successful woman - they seem to resent you so much. Very few men are generous enough to accept success in their women.

I was a wild kid. I was left to climb trees. And you know those railways logs, they piled them up, six feet apart, and I'd jump from one to the other. Without a safety net! I was an incredible tomboy.

When I started singing, I couldn't be shut up.

You want success, and then when you do get it, you don't want it because of the attention.

When you live in a safe place like Monte Carlo, you can walk home at any time of the night and you don't have to worry. I don't feel at risk there. If I drive myself, I can leave the car doors unlocked.

I learned by standing in the wings and watching established acts on stage.

I'm always being asked if I watch 'The X Factor,' and I do from time to time. I know it makes for great TV and that Simon Cowell has a real gift.

I'm too busy putting my energies into my performance to be a diva.

No wedding bells for me anymore. I've been happily married to my profession for years.

I think men are afraid to be with a successful woman, because we are terribly strong, we know what we want and we are not fragile enough.

You don't get older, you get better.